Alabama rated top state for the gun industry, Rhode Island the worst

(FOX News) -- Red Alabama is the best state for the firearms industry when it comes to factors such as jobs and gun culture, while blue Rhode Island is the worst, according to the jobs website Zippia. The rankings reflect the sharp regional and political divide in the country on guns.

"A general rule of thumb emerged from the data -- head south if you are looking to get one of as many as 141,500 jobs generated by companies that make, distribute, and sell guns," the website said. The advice to head south also pertained to another 159,623 jobs in ancillary industries such as gun component suppliers.

But another "rule of thumb" is also apparent: If you want a job in the gun industry, head into Trump country. Each of the study's top ten states - Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Arizona, Florida, Indiana, Alaska, Missouri, and Louisiana - went for President Trump in the 2016 presidential election, most of them decisively. Of the ten worst states for the industry - Rhode Island, New Jersey, Vermont, Washington, New York Wisconsin, North Dakota, Maine, Nebraska and Massachusetts - Hillary Clinton won seven.

"There's a very strong correlation between people being conservative or liberal and what their views are on guns," said Dr. John R. Lott Jr., one of the nation's leading experts on guns and crime.

All but one of the top ten states for gun manufacturers also were ranked in the top half of the libertarian CATO Institute's "Freedom in the States" list, which surveys state fiscal and regulatory policies and issues related to personal freedom. A common refrain among gun rights supporters is that you need the Second Amendment to protect the First.

The Zippia study reflected deeper societal trends because it didn't only look at the number of firearms jobs and manufacturers in a state, although these were the most important measures. It also analyzed whether there was a "positive" environment for gun producers as determined by measures like the number of state laws related to guns and the gun "culture" of a state - including the percentage of people who own firearms.

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