In a 2011 interview, Virginia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe faulted Virginia for not bidding on his car company GreenTech Automative when he decided to build a plant for his company in Mississippi over Virginia.

"We don't bid on big car plants here and shame on us," McAuliffe said in response to a question about his company's plant being located in Mississippi. "You gotta incentivize. Mississippi gave me 200 free acres, they gave me tax incentives, they gave me the infrastructure to lead into the factory. This is what states do all over the country."

The comment stands in contrast with an April 2013 interview with Virginia NBC affiliate reporter Ryan Nobles, when McAuliffe was asked whether the state was in error for not offering an "incentive package" to build their plant there. "No, I never blamed Virginia," he said. "I live here, I want all future jobs here." NBC12 has done an extensive series on McAuliffe ties to GreenTech.

The independent fact-checking site Politifact said in a post in December "contrary to McAuliffe's claim, there is no evidence the state agency decided not to bid on the project."