LA LA LAND ECONOMICS AS MASSACHUSETTS LOSES 30,000 RESIDENTS
BOSTON, MA – Marine, successful businessman, proven government reformer and Republican gubernatorial candidate Brian Shortsleeve today blasted Governor Maura Healey and her Economic Development Secretary Eric Paley for being profoundly out of touch with the economic reality facing Massachusetts families and businesses, following new comments suggesting the Commonwealth can attract European companies because it is “less expensive” than foreign financial capitals.
“Eric Paley and Maura Healey are living in la la land,” said Shortsleeve. “Massachusetts isn’t competing with Paris or London. We’re losing to New Hampshire, Florida, Texas, and the Carolinas because Beacon Hill has made this state unaffordable. If they think it makes sense to cross the Atlantic to save money, why do they need a Competitiveness Council to explain why our companies are taking the I-93 exit ramp to New Hampshire?”
Paley’s remarks come as Massachusetts recorded another net loss of more than 30,000 residents to other states last year, driven largely by high housing costs, taxes, energy prices, and regulation.
Shortsleeve also took aim at Paley’s claim that businesses simply need to do a better job “telling the story” to workers of how great Massachusetts is.
“Maura Healey’s team keeps pitching Massachusetts like it’s a luxury brand whose high price tag is actually a sign of superiority, all while middle-class families and small businesses are being priced out,” Shortsleeve said. “It’s class Beacon Hill arrogance and elitism. When 30,000 people vote with their feet, the problem isn’t ‘messaging. The problem is policy.”
“You don’t fix an affordability crisis by telling people to squint harder and admire the view,” said Shortsleeve. “You do it by reducing the tax burden, lowering energy and housing costs, and eliminating costly mandates that make everything more expensive. As governor, that’s exactly what I’ll do to make Massachusetts affordable again so families and businesses can actually afford to stay, grow and thrive here.”