Until shutdown, CA was wallerin’ in money.
With a VERY robust economy, and very robust growth.
Sure, CA is probably an anomaly. But the economic dominance is real.
A Chimpanzee could be the governor of California and it would still be a powerhouse.
It dominates Pacific maritime commerce due to it’s size. It’s ports bring in goods that go to many other parts of the country. Contrast that with the East Coast where maritime commerce is chopped up between a great many states.
I’ve awlays thought it would interesting to see what would happen if California were broken up into 4 or 5 smaller states. Just a fantasy of mine..... ;)