A DYING STATE? – AT 9:02 A.M. ET:  New York, called the Empire State, is on the brink of economic disaster.  It joins other states that are safely Democratic, like Illinois, in being in real danger.  Right now the state is being propped up by tax revenue from Wall Street.  But New Yorkers are voting with their feet and leaving the state in record numbers.  This is what failure looks like.  From the New York Post: 

These boots were made for walking, as the song goes. Unfortunately for New York, they’re walking right out of the state, with the latest Census figures showing Florida about to overtake us as the nation’s third-most-populous state.

The Albany-based Empire Center for Public Policy crunched the numbers and found that since 2010 New York has had a net domestic­migration loss of 328,538 people.

That means more people moved out of New York than moved into it (not counting inflows from foreign immigration). Other big losers ­include Illinois, California, New Jersey and Rhode Island.

Why does this matter? It matters because whatever politicians might say about manufacturing or high-tech or natural resources, the key driver of any growing economy is people. And when people take their skills to other states, they are effectively voting with their feet against the ­status quo.

And...

Meanwhile, states such as Florida and Texas continue to attract people. It’s not just taxes prompting migration to their shores, though certainly the lack of an income tax in either the Lone Star or Sunshine state has to be a large part of the attraction. These growing states are also creating jobs, and generally offer a lower cost of living. And as a general rule, human beings do not move away from opportunity.

That’s what makes these Census numbers so telling. New York has much to offer, any advantages, including an economy roughly the size of South Korea’s and many world class industries. But the state’s taxes, heavy-handed regulation and generally anti-business ethos are making us less and less competitive by the day.

The Empire Center’s E.J. McMahon says “a state’s domestic migration rate is the ultimate measure of policy successes or failures.”

COMMENT:  You'd think states would adopt policies that would attract people rather than drive them away.  But the power of liberal politics, welfare-state ideology, and public-service unions, usually make that impossible.

I have not heard one major politician in New York say, "Maybe we should look at Florida and Texas."  It takes real leadership to do that.  But New York isn't Wisconsin, and Governor Crazy Andy Cuomo isn't Scott Walker.

Economic reality, and the track records of governors, may give us some powerful hints as to who to run in 2016.

February 11, 2014