by Amanda Head
Capital flight: Illinois has now become Taxifornia 2.0, where, like California and New York, businesses are voting with their U-Hauls and heading to Texas, and Florida. Trump has said "Job-producing people and companies are being forced to flee at levels never seen before. Remember, once people and companies leave, they are never coming back."
With the most recent departure of True Value Hardware headquarters, Illinois appears to be mimicking California's business-repellent formula, bolstering President Donald Trump's warnings to blue states that higher taxes equate to higher exits.
"Job-producing people and companies are being forced to flee at levels never seen before. Remember, once people and companies leave, they are never coming back," Trump posted to his Truth Social account in April.
True Value joins the ranks of other longtime Illinois companies like Boeing, Tyson Foods, Morton Salt and Caterpillar, the latter of which pointedly cautioned that the state's inability to balance the budget and lower taxes would drive out businesses.
Founded in Illinois in 1948, the hardware wholesaler is relocating to Fort Wayne, Indiana, following its 2024 bankruptcy and acquisition by rival Do It Best. The company cited long-term stability and a need for a more business-friendly environment, resulting in the loss of hundreds of headquarters jobs and associated revenue for the state.
The "U-Haul Growth Index" is a leading indicator of where people and companies are moving from and to. The latest data shows an overwhelming number of entrepreneurs and workers ditching Illinois and California for the greener pastures of Texas and Florida. Other states acting as refuges from high taxes and regulatory strangulation include North Carolina, Tennessee and Arizona.
Even the Chicago Bears NFL franchise announced in June that it would be relocating to Hammond, Indiana
In a particularly harsh blow to the Prairie State, the Chicago Bears, the NFL franchise that called Chicago home for over 100 years, announced in June that it would be relocating to Hammond, Indiana.
Soldier Field, home to the Bears, is the smallest in the league by capacity, is exposed to weather in a harsh climate, and despite purchasing 326 acres at the nearby Arlington Park racetrack in 2021 for a potential new site, the business climate was too uncertain for the legacy team to survive. Furthermore, in order to build a new facility with help from the fan base, it would require tax relief to make it feasible, even after a $2 billion private investment.
California: the original pack-your-bags tax climate
The Golden State has its own set of high-profile businesses that have said goodbye to high taxes, burdensome regulations and a punishing business climate. Charles Schwab was one of the first to jump ship in 2019, announcing its move from San Francisco to Westlake, Texas.
Hewlett-Packard called it quits a year later, moving from San Jose, California, to Houston. Tesla bailed in 2021, Chevron and Space X in 2024, and Public Storage this year.
It could take a while for these departures to hurt Democrats. In both California and Illinois, Democrats continue to win statewide and in urban centers.
Despite what detrimental effects may come for these states, their leaders appear to merely be following the will of their constituents. A March 2025 Pew Research Center survey found that 81% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents favor raising taxes on large businesses and corporations. Seventy-four percent support increases on households earning over $400,000 annually and support is even higher among liberal Democrats (90% for businesses, 83% for high earners).
This aligns with earlier 2024 Navigator Research findings showing 94% of Democrats backing taxes on the rich.
More recent 2026 polling from the Bipartisan Policy Center and Data for Progress reinforces the pattern, with Democrats preferring targeted hikes on millionaires and large corporations as a way to address debt or fund priorities.
Amanda Head is White House Correspondent for Just The News. You can follow her here.
Source: https://justthenews.com/government/white-house/california-illinois-trumps-predicted-tax-apocalypse-has-midwest-sequel
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