Manufacturing is thriving in the South. Here’s why neither party can admit it.

Both parties are afraid to confront the real story behind manufacturing losses.

By Gary Winslett, The Washington Post, May 14, 2025 - There’s a popular story that politicians in both parties like to tell us: The Rust Belt was a thriving region until China, Mexico and their American business allies tore their manufacturing jobs away with lopsided trade deals. Whether through President Donald Trump’s tariffs or some Democratic alternative, it’s now up to Washington to get them back.

It’s a politically convenient tale for courting voters in key swing states, pining for the way things once were. The problem is that it’s not true — and it is leading to some terrible policy decisions.

A big missing part of the story: Interstate competition. The Rust Belt’s manufacturing decline isn’t primarily about jobs going to Mexico. It’s about jobs going to Alabama, South Carolina, Georgia and Tennessee. ....

... In 1970, the Rust Belt was responsible for nearly half of all manufacturing exports while the South produced less than a quarter. Today, the roles are reversed, it is the Rust Belt that hosts less than one-fourth of all manufactured exports and the South that exports twice what the Rust Belt does.

This migration didn’t happen by accident. It was driven by specific policy choices. States such as Tennessee, Alabama, South Carolina and Texas have aggressively courted manufacturers by promising business-friendly policy environments. ... The South offers cheaper electricity, ... Southern states have built so much housing that they kept costs from becoming unaffordable. ... low state-level taxes. ... Immigration helps a lot, as well. More immigrants live in the South than any other region of the country. ... Right-to-work laws, cheap energy, affordable housing, low-cost land, fast permitting, low taxes, immigration. That’s a powerful combination, ... (Read it all)

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