Is Arizona’s Brand Toxic to State Business Environment?
As Arizona Republic writer Laurie Roberts reminds us, it's been eight months since Governor Doug Ducey announced a new plan to rebrand the Grand Canyon State.
Ducey wants to spend part of this $250,000 rebranding campaign on a new state motto (the current motto is Ditat Deus, latin for God Enriches).
When the Arizona Commerce Authority solicited submissions for a new Arizona state motto, the public obliged with a litany of possible new slogans: “Welcome to Mexico,” “Arizona...heat today, heat tomorrow,” “Arizona: Going backwards into the future since 1912,” “What federal government?,” “But it’s a dry hate,” “The Wingnut State,” and “Lower Taxes, Lower Test Scores.”
In short, Arizona has developed a reputation, particularly in the coastal regions of America, as a right-wing state ...