PayPal scraps plans for 400-job facility in North Carolina, state GOP slanders company in response

by Kerry Eleveld

Community

(This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Tuesday, Apr. 05, 2016 Tuesday, Apr. 05, 2016 at 10:58:23am PDT

CHARLOTTE, NC - NOVEMBER 4: North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory (C) speaks with guests at U.S. Rep. Thom Tillis's watch party at The Omni Hotel Ballroom on November 4, 2014, in Charlotte, North Carolina. U.S. Rep. Thom Tillis (R-NC) is running in a tight race for the North Carolina Senate seat against opponent U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan (D-NC). (Photo by Davis Turner/Getty Images) — Come explore our dark side.

Remember when North Carolina's Gov. Pat McCrory said he had "not had one company say they're moving out of North Carolina" due to the state's new anti-LGBT law? Well, PayPal announced Tuesday it was withdrawing plans to open an operations center in Charlotte, "the most dramatic display yet of corporate opposition to House Bill 2 and one that will cost the city more than 400 jobs," reports the Charlotte Observer.

At a Tuesday press conference, McCrory had no interest in reassessing his earlier statement.

McCrory refuses to answer @binker as he tries to get straight answer on whether #HB2 has had economic impact on NC after PayPal announcement
— Nick Ochsner (@NickOchsnerWBTV) April 5, 2016

Meanwhile, the state Republican Party launched a campaign of retribution against PayPal, accusing the company of "violating economic sanctions" in multiple countries, among other things. Here's part of what North Carolina GOP Vice-Chairman Michele Nix said in a statement released to the press:

So after PayPal was forced to settle after violating economic sanctions on Cuba, Sudan, and Iran, and even processed payments for someone looking to buy nuclear-weapon technology on the black market, the California-based company now has a problem doing business in North Carolina?

Just wow—North Carolina’s Republican Party has really gone off the rails. So if you're a company looking to expand in North Carolina and decide to stand on principle, better get ready for the GOP smear campaign that's coming your way!