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Opinion
Joni Balter

Amazon's HQ2 Search Is About Politics, Too

An elite workforce will expect bike paths, dog parks and vegan gastropubs. And "a compatible cultural and community environment."
Is this sustainable?

Is this sustainable?

Photographer: Mike Kane/Bloomberg
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The competition for Amazon’s second headquarters is only getting fiercer. The politicking that goes with it ranges from subtle and behind the scenes to brazenly in-your-face. At stake is a destiny-changing bonanza that is a modern-day equivalent of a railroad siting.

Just last week, an airplane waving a banner proclaiming “No Gays? No Way!” soared for four hours past Amazon’s Seattle headquarters, imploring the company not to locate HQ2 in states lacking protections for LGBT employees.