Wealth & Money Quote by Doc Hastings

A politician’s compliment that doubles as an argument for the status quo: Hastings wraps an economic claim in gratitude to make it feel like common sense. “Our region’s economy was built upon their entrepreneurial spirit” is less a history lesson than a myth of origin, the kind that conveniently narrows who counts as a legitimate builder of prosperity. The phrasing elevates “entrepreneurial spirit” into a civic virtue, turning business success into moral proof.

The pronouns do a lot of quiet work. “Our region” invites collective ownership of the outcome, but “their entrepreneurial spirit” separates the celebrated group from the broader public that’s being asked to cheer them on. That distance matters because it frames the public’s role as dependent: we prosper because they create. By the time he gets to “still depends,” the line has shifted from praise to leverage. If the economy depends on these enterprises, then policy should protect them, accommodate them, keep them thriving. The gratitude is a shield for an agenda.

The sentence is also carefully de-politicized. No mention of labor, public infrastructure, regulation, tax policy, or the ways government actively shapes “entrepreneurial” ecosystems. That omission is the subtext: markets are portrayed as natural phenomena, not contested terrain. In a regional context - likely a district balancing resource industries, small manufacturers, and local employers - this rhetoric signals allegiance to business interests while sounding non-ideological. It’s a reassurance to donors and a soothing narrative to constituents: if you want stability, don’t rock the boat that the job-creators are rowing.