PayPal has announced that it will not be creating hundreds of jobs in North Carolina following Governor Pat McCrory's signing of HB2, the anti-transgender bathroom bill that also prohibits cities from raising their minimum wage.
More specifically, PayPal has decided not to expand in the city of Charlotte. As you probably recall, Charlotte was singled out and targeted by Republicans in the state legislature and Governor McCrory.
The San Jose, California-based company said Tuesday it was canceling its planned expansion in Charlotte because of the law, which was signed March 23. Gov. Pat McCrory was on hand to celebrate days earlier when PayPal announced plans to hire about 400 people at a new operation center in Charlotte. [...]
"This decision reflects PayPal's deepest values and our strong belief that every person has the right to be treated equally, and with dignity and respect," the company said in a statement.
While there is a certainly some level of schadenfreude that I feel is fair, I also feel that is has to be tempered because the city of Charlotte is now paying the price for Republican bigotry.
The city is not at fault for passing a non-discrimination ordinance in the first place. The legislature and governor are at fault for responding by codifying discrimination.
There's a battle being waged across the country between liberal cities and the conservative state lawmakers who overrule them without any hesitation. Lawmakers in many states have passed or are moving to pass laws that prohibit cities from following their own priorities. Passing federal laws to overrule these conservative state lawmakers should be a priority for congressional Democrats in the coming years. A city like Charlotte would not have to pass a non-discrimination ordinance and the state could not overrule the city if it was federal law.
I fully expect to see transgender rights challenged by conservatives in front of the Supreme Court. It's just a question of when.