VA is the Latest Blue State to Drive Gun Makers
Out in Favor of a Friendlier Business Climate

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.

"Georgia attracts job creators from all over the country and world because we work with them, not against them," said Gov. Brian Kemp in a press release. "Our state's pro-business approach, skilled workforce, and enduring support for constitutional freedoms make us an ideal home for manufacturers like Rideout Arsenal, and we look forward to their success here in the No. 1 state for business."

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.

"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. …