A huge economic development project wants to come to Alabama. It’s just raring to come. It wants to come so badly that it will come without any tax breaks, any cash, any infrastructure investment, any job training or anything else. It’s been trying to come for some time. It is convinced that it can do great good for Alabama and that Alabama can do good for it.  Of course, we Alabamians truly love economic development, and a huge economic project really wants to come to Alabama.

It would be the biggest economic project ever to come to Alabama. I believe that the largest industry to come to Alabama so far is ThyssenKrupp. It provided 2,000 initial jobs. This economic project will produce 30,000 jobs and that number will grow over time. We just love economic projects, and a huge economic project really wants to come to Alabama.

This huge economic project will pay all taxes at the going rates. The ThyssenKrupp industry near Mobile received more than $1 billion in tax breaks, cash, job training and other benefits. There were others that received big money such as Mercedes ($238 million), Hyundai ($234.6 million), Honda ($158 million) and so on. This economic new project will provide more than fifteen times as many jobs as ThyssenKrupp without asking for one thin dime. We love economic development so much we pay dearly, and a huge economic project really wants to come to Alabama without any of the usual subsidies.

This economic project will positively impact every county in the state of Alabama. Most industries impact a few counties at best. A very, very few impact a whole region of the state.  Not one impacts the whole state. This industry will directly impact Mobile on the South, Huntsville on the North, Birmingham and Montgomery in the middle, Dothan, Auburn and Anniston on the East, Tuscaloosa and the Shoals on the West and everything in between. It will impact every county, every city and every community. We seek economic development, and this huge economic project really wants to come to Alabama.

This economic project will boost a whole lot of other businesses across the width and breath of this state. There is not a single county already established where businesses will not benefit in one way or another. And it is not just one or two types but an array of businesses.  Every business should want this economic project to come to Alabama because it helps all businesses. A huge economic project really wants to Alabama.

This economic project will stimulate great economic activity. Over the next six years, it will produce $28 billion in productive economic transactions. This wide, deep and enveloping river of economic activity will lift big and small boats in ways we cannot envision. A huge economic project really wants to come to Alabama.

This economic project will generate $1.7 billion in state and local tax revenues beyond any costs over the next six years. Alabama is in dire need of additional revenue. Its budget is so out of whack that a quarter of a billion dollars must be cut from much needed services. The alternative is to raise hundreds of millions in new taxes. And so many Alabama leaders have pledged “no new taxes.” This economic project will not immediately help this budgetary crisis, but it will help a whole lot in the long run. A huge economic project really wants to come to Alabama.

Too many businesses and other entities are dying on the community vine. This is especially true in rural areas and small towns. This economic project will be a lifeline, helping many of these entities survive to see more years. It’s a community lifesaver and a huge economic project really wants to come to Alabama.

Some political leaders are afraid that this economic project will somehow help poor people and they oppose it.

However, every dime of these billions of dollars will go to businesses, professionals and others. Not one nickel will go to poor people unless it’s paid in salary for work performed as employees. A huge economic project really wants to come to Alabama.

There are other benefits that will flow from this economic project. However, I have written enough for this occasion. A huge economic project really wants to come to Alabama, and I am doing everything within my power to bring it here.

This huge economic project is expansion of Medicaid. It is a gigantic economic development project. We just love economic development even when we pay dearly. This is one that we don’t have to pay because it pays us. This huge economic project really wants to come to Alabama, and we must do whatever it takes to bring it here.

When I first came to the Alabama Senate, I was fighting ferociously for a bill. I kept saying how it would help poor people, and I kept running into roadblocks. I could not get to first base with the bill. Then Sen. Mac Parsons, who is now deceased, asked me if I really wanted to pass the bill. I said, “Yes.” He told me to stop talking about poor people and say how the bill would help me to get re-elected. I followed his advice and passed the bill. Sometimes we have to package good products in wrappings that help others to buy it.