Last Updated on May 17, 2023
South Carolina’s Republican legislature has rushed through a bill giving woke German car company Volkswagen $1.3 billion in incentives, so they can make electric vehicles in the state by the end of 2026. The deal, however, has been called out as highly corrupt.
The South Carolina General Assembly has hurried a bill through appropriating $1.3 billion dollars in taxpayer money to Volkswagen affiliate Scout through an incentives package, for the purpose of making electric vehicles in a South Carolina factory by the end of 2026. Introduced on March 6th of this year by house speaker Murrell Smith, the bill (H.4088) cleared both chambers within two weeks.
This massive spending was not debated by either chamber of the General Assembly and was rammed through at breakneck speed.
The argument for the allocation is that it will bring revenue to the state with Governor Henry McMaster saying “You have to spend money to make money.”
Despite McMaster’s remarks, electric vehicle sales are down and it’s being widely questioned whether or not the deal can actually help South Carolina’s economy.
The $1.3 billion Volkswagen bill has been criticized as a corrupt bargain helping out a woke corporation at the expense of the South Carolina taxpayer.
Some groups, including the Small Business advocacy group Mom & Pop Alliance of South Carolina, have questioned why the assembly is helping major corporations and not small businesses and why it was rushed through with little to no debate.
The project will be managed by the SC Department of Commerce, which has a long history of mismanagement. Likewise, Volkswagen has a history of scandals for which they were sued by the EPA for environmental fraud.
Volkswagen is also a major proponent of Environmental Social Governance (ESG) and has a close relationship with the Chinese Communist Party.
The German car producer’s official website states, “The importance of ESG is also growing continuously within our organization and is fully embedded in our decision-making processes…nevertheless, we are fully aware that much more needs to be done.”
With this commitment to social credit scores and fealty to the CCP, it is curious why establishment Republicans in Columbia would give over a billion dollars in incentives, including millions in taxpayer money, instead of helping small businesses based in South Carolina.
This report was authored by Adam Danberg. Adam is a reporter based in the Hudson Valley of New York. He is involved in local politics and is an avid history buff dedicated to saving New York.
