Waning blue state influence will enhance prosperity going forward
OPINION:
More people than ever are calling the United States home. That’s because America remains an exceptional place — the shining city on a hill.
The Census Bureau says the population expanded by 1.6 million in 2023, attributing the difference to a welcome downturn in mortality and return to normalcy following the COVID-19 scare.
The resurgence is centered in the South in what the government agency euphemistically calls “net domestic migration.” That’s their phrase for blue state residents so uncomfortable with burden of high taxation, high crime and lockdowns that they packed their belongings and headed for greener pastures.
In 9 out of 10 cases, blue state refugees were drawn to the greater economic and personal freedoms on offer in the states led by Republican governors or legislatures. Often, it’s the best educated and wealthiest making the move.
In percentage terms, the biggest winners last year were South Carolina, Florida, Texas, Idaho and North Carolina. The biggest net losers have been Massachusetts, New Jersey, Illinois, New York and California. The Committee to Unleash Prosperity tallied the figures and found that 6 million Americans have traded the blue state lifestyle for red states since 2011.
The political consequences are significant. Control of Congress rests on razor-thin margins. Just four seats in the House keep the speaker’s gavel in the hands of Rep. Mike Johnson, Louisiana Republican, rather than those of Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, New York Democrat.
In 2020, reapportionment gave Texas two more seats in Congress, while Florida and North Carolina each added a representative to their delegation. These changes came at the expense of California, New York and Illinois.
As long as one the blue states continue their tax-and-spend ways, their influence will wane at the federal level. When congressional districts are redrawn once again for the 2030 Census, expect a further reduction in blue state influence.
It’s no accident that the ideas of faith, family and freedom will win in the long term. Nihilistic, big-government policies are unsustainable and ultimately self-destructive. They’re losers by definition.
While it’s easy to become discouraged each time someone with bad ideas takes office, it’s only temporary. Overall, we’ve done pretty well for a nation that will celebrate its 250th birthday, or semiquincentennial, two years from now.
We’ve had the choice of altering our national course every four years since 1788. We’re blessed with that same opportunity once again this November. Americans can choose to promote prosperity and enhance respect for our republic on the world stage. We can choose to secure our borders and walk the streets without fear.
As President Ronald Reagan once explained, “there was some divine plan that placed this great continent between two oceans to be sought out by those who were possessed of an abiding love of freedom and a special kind of courage.” America remains that nation.
The votes that really matter, the votes people cast with their feet, are the reason to be optimistic about better days ahead.
