In my previous piece I promised to provide some constructive feedback to 23 Red states based on a color spectrum analysis using the Red Index Score. While the overall progress of their anti-ESG legislative campaigns has been pretty paltry so far, there is still time to learn, improve, and get better. No one really knows how long the ESG fervor will continue but it’s a safe bet it will continue through the election. Which gives these states at least one more year to show they can pull this off! I just hope they won’t be looking to the Federal government and Blue state coffers to cover the holes they’re creating in their pension funds.

RED

Texas: This is a very impressive score. Only Florida, Utah, and Arkansas have passed more bills. Stand out performance on blacklist mandates with three. I have written about their strong leadership here. Only four states have one (West Virginia, Arkansas, Kentucky, and Iowa) and the rest have zero. Also got the top scores for opposition from labor unions and money from out-of-state organizations. The only weaknesses are no push back from banks or credit unions and they haven’t been solicited by Strive Asset Management to provide proxy voting advice.

Arizona: Coming in just one point behind Texas with Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs vetoing three excellent bills is a stunning achievement. While some may be calling Arizona a purple state, my analysis shows they are a solid red which bodes well for Mr. Trump in the 2024 election. Their strategy for achieving Red status was a clever one. They got no points for four categories but knocked the ball out of the park by getting the top scores on pension return threat, proxy restrictions, and concerns from state treasurers and fund managers. Tied with Texs on money from out-of-state organizations This shows true commitment. They were willing to take a big economic hit to their citizens from their bills in furtherance of their rabid anti-ESG crusade.

Doll, 1935/1942. Artist Esther Peck. (Photo by Heritage Art/Heritage Images via Getty Images) HERITAGE IMAGES VIA GETTY IMAGES

ORANGE

Florida: I’m sure Governor DeSantis is quite disappointed in his state’s orange status, five points behind Arizona. His already struggling Presidential campaign won’t be helped by this relatively weak showing. Further analysis shows how paltry his progress is in his anti-ESG crusade. Nearly half of his points came from passing three bills. Hey, he’s the Governor and gets what he wants! You also have to wonder about the anti-ESG quality of these bills since they contain no blacklist mandates, and no concerns were expressed by state treasurers and fund managers or business groups. Only one from labor unions and banks and credit unions. I have written about one of those bills and I actually think it’s fine. Another bad sign if pernicious progressive me likes what the Guvnor has done. Some silver lining in being just behind the really red states in getting money from out-of-state organizations (and better than all the rest). Also has been solicited by Strive. Maybe Vivek is angling to be Ron’s VP Candidate if this long shot comes int? Not as long a shot as Vivek who’s probably making friends with all the others as well.

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