Gun makers vote with their feet

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There is much contemporary speculation about America’s future. For example: can our constitutional, representative republic continue to exist when about half the country doesn’t want a constitutional, representative republic and hates the other half that does?

This is particularly true where the Second Amendment is at issue, as it is daily, as blue states and cities pass blatantly unconstitutional laws and ordinances knowing they’ll eventually be overturned. In the meantime, years will likely pass, and they’ll get to harass, perhaps even imprison, law-abiding citizens, and waste millions of taxpayer dollars defending the indefensible. But what the heck! It’s not their money.

This attitude is also producing a trend that may very well repeat the dynamics that helped the North win the Civil War. If and when America splits asunder, the red states are going to have all the gun, accessory, and ammunition manufacturers.

The consequences of the policy choices made by Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger and the Virginia Assembly are starting to cost The Old Dominion in the form of lost jobs, lost wages, lost taxes and lost business. And Georgia is coming out as the winner.

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp announced that Rideout Arsenal, a firearm designer and manufacturer that specializes in high-end, high-performance competition pistols, is relocating to Thomasville, Georgia. The company is bringing with them investment in a $22 million facility and 120 new jobs.
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Spanberger is the former CIA type who ran deceptively as a moderate Democrat. “Deceptively,” because there is no such thing as a moderate Democrat. The moment she took office, the state tilted to the left, and she has ruled as an anti-American communist. That has consequences:

Rideout Arsenal owners, Travis and Kelsey Rideout, said they’re proud to manufacture in the United States and are excited to be relocating to a friendlier business climate in Georgia. But leaving their current location in Spotsylvania, Virginia, wasn’t the original plan.
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“This relocation was not something we originally planned to pursue. The reality is that recent anti-gun legislation in Virginia created a significant uncertainty for our company and ultimately forced us to look for a state where we could continue operating, investing, and growing with confidence,” Travis and Kelsey explained in the press release. “We are excited to bring new jobs and manufacturing investment to Thomas County and are grateful for the warm welcome we have already received.”

Gun, accessory and ammo makers have been fleeing blue states for years:

Georgia is no stranger to firearm manufacturing. GLOCK, Inc., Daniel Defense, Heckler & Koch USA and BPI Outdoors are among the dozens of firearm, ammunition, and suppressor makers that call Georgia home.

Some of America’s oldest gun makers, harkening back to the nation’s founding, have fled hostile Democrats. In 2021, Smith & Wesson moved to Maryville, TN when Connecticut wrote legislation banning the manufacture of AR-15s and the like. And Ruger moved its headquarters from Virginia to North Carolina, where it already had a factory.

A number of gun makers have moved to Wyoming, and others to Montana, where Montana ‘s Governor continues to encourage their flight:

“Do you want to move back to America?” That resonates with gun makers and citizens in Colorado, which under Democrat rule, has become the People’s Republic of Colorado, and is in fierce competition with California, Illinois, New York State and other People’s Republics to see who can destroy their state most quickly and completely.

“If you needed another sign Democrat governors are out of touch with reality, well here it is. Colorado is ranked in the top 10 states with the biggest gun industry,” Gov. Gianforte explained. “But the Democrat governor of Colorado signed into law one of the most restrictive gun bans ever adopted in the United States. The law bans the manufacturing and selling of semiautomatic firearms. This is on top of the liberal state’s existing ban on high-capacity magazines. That’s just crazy. So, to all gun manufacturers in Colorado, my question to you is simple. Do you want to move back to America?”

Blue states are happy to see the gun industry leave, but are becoming increasingly worried about the loss of that tax base. New York Governor Kathy Hochul has taken to begging the wealthy to come back so she can tax them some more. Surprisingly, there have been no takers.

Red states are happy to have the jobs, tax income, and the general economic benefits from people who share their American values. Should the split ever come, they’ll be even happier to have them.

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Mike McDaniel is a USAF veteran, classically trained musician, Japanese and European fencer, lifelong athlete, firearm instructor, retired police officer, and high school and college English teacher. He is a published author and blogger. His home blog is Stately McDaniel Manor.