Governors Gather in Washington to Launch U.S. Chamber's Jobs Report

May 4, 2010

Politics Daily

David Sessions

A group of governors from both parties met Monday at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce for a discussion of state-level job creation. Govenors Rick Perry (R-Tex.), Bill Richardson (D-N. Mex.), Jack Markell (D-Del.), Tim Pawlenty (R-Minn.), Donald Carcieri (R-R.I.), and Joe Manchin (D-W. Va.) were on hand to celebrate a new report commissioned by the Chamber that ranks states on the job-creation performance.

The report, completed by the Praxis Strategy Group, is part of the Chamber's "American Free Enterprise" initiative launched last October to promote free-market alternatives to the Obama administration's agenda. It found, not surprisingly, that low taxes and "streamlined" regulation help states lure new investments. The report measured all 50 U.S. states on a series of business-related metrics -- taxes, infrastructure, exports and innovation, among others -- and ranked them accordingly.

An essay by Joel Kotkin introducing the study argues forcefully for a decentralized, state-led approach to economic invigoration, and warns that attempts to emulate European-style social democracies are "not rational" for the United States. Kotkin's message echoes the concerns of Chamber CEO Tom Donohue, who said last year that there were "plans afoot" to hold back American capitalism.

"By embracing many of the strategies at the core of our free enterprise system -- entrepreneurship, open trade, competitive tax rates -- states can help jumpstart our economic recovery and create more jobs," Donohue said Monday.

At the summit Monday, the attendees discussed immigration's impact on jobs, with Texas governor Rick Perry arguing that border security was essential to a steady economy even though Mexico is his state's leading trade partner. At a later meeting, Perry asked Homeland Security secretary Janet Napolitano to send 3,000 National Guard troops to patrol the border. The governor said he had a "good feeling" about the meeting and called Napolitano a "border governor."

"By bringing this bipartisan group of governors together, the Chamber is helping to lead the charge in finding a solution to our nation's challenge of creating jobs and revitalizing the economy," said Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty, who helped organize the event.

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