When North Carolina GOP officials first began claiming the state's moral superiority by comparing it to countries with some of the world’s worst human rights records, it seemed safe to assume they would surely see the folly of their argument. The notion that the state would be a more appealing destination for companies because its government was clearly better on LGBTQ issues than that of places like Iran and Russia seemed so absurd that it would quickly be scrapped.
The first time that cagey rationale surfaced was two weeks ago, within hours of news that PayPal was pulling the plug on a 400-job project in the state. In one of the least politic responses imaginable, the state's GOP Vice-Chairman, Michele Nix, lashed out:
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?
C'mon guys, it's not like we're actively torturing people or anything. As if being based in California wasn’t wicked enough, PayPal. Nix might need a little refresher course in diplomacy. But in her defense, PayPal was a big loss and the entire state party went into an all out damage-control tailspin that day.
Then came news last Friday that Cirque Du Soleil had cancelled its North Carolina performance and the state’s GOP spin machine sputtered back into action after a week of reflection. Here's Dallas Woodhouse, executive director of the North Carolina Republican Party:
"While they say they won't perform here, Cirque Du Soleil will tour in Russia and has or will perform in 13 states with the same level of anti-discrimination protections as North Carolina, which are now tougher than the protections afforded under federal law."
That last part isn't exactly true: Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees of the federal government are indeed covered by nondiscrimination protections. This was accomplished by executive order, just like McCrory did at the state level. True, federal statute still doesn’t cover all LGBT Americans in employment, housing, or public accommodations, but neither does North Carolina law. Still, it seems a minor quibble when NC Republicans are on such a messaging roll.
And Gov. Pat McCrory obviously agrees, rolling out his own "we don't suck nearly as bad" comparison on national TV last weekend during his big Meet The Press interview. McCrory was a bit miffed that major Hollywood production companies like Lionsgate have ditched shoots they had scheduled in the Tar Heel State.
“And these things need to be discussed, not threatened by Hollywood or anyone. You know, Hollywood, with all due respects to the Hollywood, the new Batman and Robin movie is playing in China, which has anti-gay, terrible, terrible human rights violations. This is not like an issue of bathroom privacy or restroom privacy in North Carolina.”
That's right, governor, go ahead and float that argument on national TV! That Meet The Press audience? Not super savvy, if you ask me.
Apparently these GOP bozos never thought of the reverse argument: It should be telling that these companies are doing business in China, Russia, and Iran, but North Carolina’s just a little too repugnant.
Yet another lesson in amateur hour from NC Republicans. First, they unraveled over the PayPal announcement, pointing fingers in every direction but their own. Then the baffling entanglement of workplace law they had visited upon the state came to light. Now it’s, “On a scale from fascism to democracy, how bad do we suck?”
North Carolina’s GOP has had quite a run. Perhaps they’ll take heed now that both Duke and the University of North Carolina are calling for repeal of HB2 while conventions keep dropping like flies and major national bands continue to cancel. But hey—it’s not like they’re Iran.
