I haven’t had the good fortune of visiting a Buc-ee’s convenience store/gas station/monster-sized extravaganza, but several of my RedState colleagues have.
I feel left out because even “Freddy the German,” the soccer-loving tourist who came to the U.S. to watch the FIFA World Cup and then went viral for his awestruck reactions on social media to his wonderful experience in America, has been to the mega-gas stations with apparently incredible food.
DUDE LMAO THIS IS A GAS STATION😭😭😭 pic.twitter.com/YYFmWJiCQa
— Freddy🇩🇪 (@FreddyLA7) June 10, 2026
I’ll get there.
But it probably won’t be in a blue state, because Buc-ee’s founder and CEO Arch "Beaver" Aplin III said he’s going to focus on expanding his operations in conservative locales with traditional values that match his own and which actually support something known as “business.”
Here he is at a Buc-ee’s opening in Benton, Arkansas, on August 17:
Founder of Buc-ee’s BREAKS HIS SILENCE on how he chooses which state to build in: pic.twitter.com/IxWD7I3Gfe
— Chad Prather (@WatchChad) August 19, 2026
Aplin:
We have a lot of opportunities. We're growing. We're building in a lot of places. But when you find a conservative, business-friendly state with a phenomenal workforce, it makes a difference.
And I'm starting to realize life's too short to try to build in places that people don't appreciate what you're bringing.
Arkansas’ first-ever @bucees is open for business!
— Sarah Huckabee Sanders (@SarahHuckabee) August 18, 2026
The Natural State is welcoming more visitors than ever before - and Buc-ee’s is just another reason to keep on coming back. pic.twitter.com/pEL3u2JMhs
He’s following the same trend that California Gov. Gavin Newsom knows all too well (not that he cares) as corporations flee the Golden State — if you spit in their faces, they will leave for places where they’re actually valued.
Aplin continued, saying that it’s not that complicated a subject: treat people well, and they will come back for more. Treat them like horse manure, and they’ll find someplace else to go:
"That leadership, that concept, that idea of conservative, business-friendly, family-oriented concept works so much better if it trickles down from the very leadership from the top at the governor's office, at the congressman, at senator, at the mayor, the representatives," he said.
Aplin pointed to Benton as an example of the approach, saying the city’s business-friendly environment helped pave the way for Buc-ee’s newest location.
"What we found when we got here into Benton was a business-friendly town," he said.
Why wouldn't you go to somewhere like Arkansas, or… Texas?
ON MY BUCKET LIST: Everything's Bigger: 75,000 Square Foot Buc-ee's Opens in Texas
Get Ready America: Buc-ee’s Debuts in 6 New States This Year and Next
One could argue that we’re seeing a Great Sorting: businesses — and citizens — are fleeing mostly blue northern states to red southern ones that value freedom, capitalism, and the American way. Will blue states get the message, or just continue to hurtle down their suicidal paths?
Buc-ee’s is expanding across the South because conservative, business-friendly states welcome investment, support job creators, and value hardworking families.
— Stephen Moore (@StephenMoore) August 24, 2026
As CEO Arch Aplin put it, “Life’s too short to try to build in places that people don’t appreciate what you’re… pic.twitter.com/G3N56wEedS
Buc-ee’s is expanding across the South because conservative, business-friendly states welcome investment, support job creators, and value hardworking families.
As CEO Arch Aplin put it, “Life’s too short to try to build in places that people don’t appreciate what you’re bringing.”
Will blue states ever learn?
It’s a battle that’s far from over, and the socialists and progressives are determined to reimagine this country in their own impossible, imaginary image. We must work tirelessly to ensure their failure because Marxism has never worked, and it never will.
Who would have thought that a gas station chain would become a symbol of our Great Divide?
Editor's Note: President Trump is leading America into the "Golden Age" as Democrats desperately try to stop it.
Help us continue to report on President Trump's successes and combat Democrats' lies. Join RedState VIP and use promo code FIGHT to receive 60% off your membership.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member