Nikki Haley: Boeing made a good business decision moving out of WA

Dec 13, 2023, 7:19 PM | Updated: 10:16 pm

It has been two years since Boeing stopped making the 787 Dreamliner in Everett. The company now exclusively makes the jet in South Carolina, where presidential candidate Nikki Haley served as governor from 2011 to 2017.

Haley, who once served as a Boeing board member, joined The Jason Rantz Show on AM 770 KTTH to explain why it was a good business decision for Boeing to move out of Washington state.

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“Businesses have a hard time, and what they want to make sure they do is that they can grow their businesses without [government] getting in the way,” Haley said. “I think the other side of it is in South Carolina, we don’t have a need for unions, because we don’t need middlemen.”

Washington is still home to the most Boeing employees, despite moving its headquarters out of state in 2001. So how important is Washington to the future of Boeing?

Haley said if government keeps getting in the way, then businesses like Boeing will have to make even more difficult decisions in the future.

“There’s great productivity coming out of South Carolina, because everything doesn’t cost as much as what it cost to build it in Washington state,” Haley said. “Our goal should be how do we make it a ‘Live Free or Die’ country? How do we make sure that government gets out of the way of all businesses, regardless of the state, and make sure that small businesses continue to be the heartbeat of our economy.”

More on Nikki Haley: KIRO, KTTH hosts react to Nikki Haley’s bid for the Republican ticket

Haley endorsed by New Hampshire governor

Haley recently earned a coveted endorsement from New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu in her campaign for president. It comes at a particularly good time with the Iowa caucuses a month away.

“It’s pretty awesome,” said Haley. “I mean, you know, he’s the coolest governor in the country, and the fact that he put his name next to ours, we couldn’t be more proud. We couldn’t be more excited. And the momentum on the ground is so fun. It really is exciting to see what’s happening.”

Haley also chatted about unions, the conflict between Israel and Hamas, and the removal of dams in Washington state. Listen to the entirety of the conversation below:

Listen to the Jason Rantz Show weekday afternoons from 3 – 7 p.m. on KTTH 770 AM (or HD Radio 97.3 FM HD-Channel 3). Subscribe to the podcast here.

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Nikki Haley: Boeing made a good business decision moving out of WA