VIRGINIA HAS IT ALL Governor Terry McAuliffe makes the case

Posted on 06/08/2016 | About Virginia

Virginia’s dynamic Governor, Terry McAuliffe was in Toronto recently leading a three-day marketing mission to Canada. Virginia is hardly unknown to Canadians - more than 600,000 of us visited in 2014, resulting in almost $214 million in spending – an incredible increase of almost 65 percent year over year, but Virginia’s best salesman thinks there’s room for improvement, so yet again, he’s on the road (he’s probably the most travelled Governor in the US) determined to produce jobs and increase the economy of Virginia.

Virginia continues to build on its economic relationship with Canada. From 2011-2015 Canadian companies invested more than $150 million and created 775 new jobs in Virginia and more than 50 Canadian companies currently operate in the Commonwealth.
Canada is Virginia’s number one export market in tourism with the majority of Canadians visiting for holiday, leisure and recreation. While most drive, an increasing number are travelling by air, prompted in part by additional flights.
Total passenger volume has increased almost 50 percent since Porter Airlines began service to Washington Dulles International, in Chantilly Virginia, in April 2012. Additionally, Air Canada began new non-stop service this May 2, operating three flights daily between Dulles and Toronto Pearson Airport.
In fact, the less than robust loonie doesn’t seem to have had much impact on Canadian visitation. In a private interview, we asked the Governor why he thought that might be?
“Canadians are used to a cyclical dollar,” he said, “it’s is less than a day’s drive for most Canadians, and 7 out of 10 people who come, drive.
“With gas so cheap they save money there - so, it’s just not that expensive.”
Besides that, he explained with a glint, “look at what we have for them - 275 wineries, 145 craft breweries, an Oyster trail … you drink our beer, you drink our wine, you eat our oysters, Virginia is for Lovers … you figure what comes next,” he ends with raised eyebrows and a chuckle. It’s a funny line and one line he delivers frequently, but it gets a laugh every time!
The Governor was accompanied by Secretary of Commerce and Trade Maurice Jones, Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry Todd Haymore, Rita McClenny, president and CEO of the Virginia Tourism Corporation, Heidi Johannesen, director of International Marketing for Virginia Tourism and various other representatives of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP), Virginia Tourism Corporation and Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS). The delegation visited Montreal, and Toronto.
In 2015, Canada was Virginia’s largest export destination, receiving over $3.38 billion in manufactured goods. Top export products included vehicles (other than rail), industrial machinery, mineral fuels, paper and paperboard, and electrical machinery.
“Our Ag (agriculture) exports to Canada are huge,” said McAuliffe, and in fact Canada is the second largest export destination for Virginia agriculture and forestry products, a position the country has held since 2013.
In 2015, Virginia exported more than $291 million in agricultural and forestry products to Canada, a more than 4 percent increase from the previous year. Through VDACS, the Commonwealth has a trade representative based in Toronto, who is responsible for the entire Canadian market. Top opportunities for Virginia exporters in Canada include aerospace and defense products, information and communications technology, mining, power generation, safety and security equipment, and renewable energy.
VEDP’s International Trade Division has led a total of 49 companies on eight trade missions and trade shows in Canada in the last three years.
Governor McAuliffe will meet with senior business executives and government representatives to promote the advantages of doing business in Virginia. The Governor and his delegation will attend more than 20 meetings over the course of the mission
“The numbers speak for themselves,” said the governor, “the numbers are incredible, I don’t think any state can say that about Canada.”
While Canada is by far the number one trade partner for the Commonwealth, which has an ever increasing presence north of the border, we asked the Governor what other countries he had targeted.
“We’ve really reached out to China – I’ve done missions to China, Japan Korea,” he said, “and we do a lot in Europe as well. Folks in Britain love to visit. Obviously there’s the history – they sent those three ships over in 1607 - they didn’t go to Maryland or Pennsylvania or Massachusetts – they came here.
“They’re (Maryland, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts) 1620 - we’re 1607 – I like remind people of Massachusetts of that.” He joked, “The little dinky rock they’ve got up there (Plymouth Rock) – that was 1620. We are 1607.”
McAuliffe reminds us that his journeys all have a serious purpose, “I constantly travel – why? First of all 95 percent of the world’s customers live outside the United States of America - so you better get in the game and you had better travel – so that’s what I do - constantly.”
And it has paid off.
“Since I’ve been governor we created about 150,000 new jobs, I’ve brought $11.2 billion in new capital investment – most of that by going overseas and by going face to face with people. You really can’t do this, you know, by sending off a video – and I do think people appreciate that the Governor actually comes and adds a little flair – whatever it ads – but it’s important. Tourism is a huge part of our yield, it’s a 2.4 billion industry in Virginia and it employs 217 thousand people.
McAuliffe is vey serious about building the economy of Virginia.
“Virginia is the number one recipient of Department of Defense salaries.” He says.
“We have the largest Naval base in the world, 27 military instillations, The Pentagon, The CIA, Quantico – all are in Virginia, so, when you have sequestration like we did three or four years ago we get hit the hardest. So my whole emphasis - one of the reasons why I ran for governor - is to diversify the economy and to bring in new business.” And he is most certainly Salesman-in-Chief, a job he seems to enjoy tremendously.
Whether persuading venerable old wine stores in Britain to carry Virginia wine or trying to persuade the French that “Our wine is better than theirs – and after a few bottles of wine we had a good time!” Terry McAuliffe has a vision for Virginia and he intends to make it happen.
Right now he says, “we’re leading on cyber security, all the personalized medicine in the human Genome sequencing, we have more data centres that any state in America, we have the second highest number of technology workers – and a huge asset – I just announced a 3.9% unemployment rate.
“Our economy is booming – we have the biggest surplus in Virginia history. The lowest unemployment of any State in the southeast, and great education.
“We also have more veterans than any state per capita and they are a great dedicated work force – motivated and disciplined.
“Virginia has all the assets - the 28 miles of ocean front, the beautiful blue ridge mountains, the historic sites that nobody else has – when George Washing and Thomas Jefferson wanted a place to live - they picked Virginia. People love the history.”
In a brief aside about current politics in the US, McAuliffe who has in the past been Chairman of the Democratic National Committee, and Campaign Chairman for both Clintons, predicted that Hillary Clinton would win the nomination and win California, “by at least 10 points.” Last night that proved to be accurate.
On learning I drive through Virginia fairly regularly, but don’t always stop, he pretends great dismay, “You’re driving down to Florida? You’re driving right through the Promised Land!” he says.
“You have to stop!”
Blue Ridge Mountains? Wine? Oysters? Okay, Governor. That’s a promise!