This entire deal was incredibly poorly timed. While the national Amazon roadshow was raging on, the truth behind another high-tech government deal was being exposed. Foxconn received massive benefits from Wisconsin on the promise of manufacturing jobs, and they were equivocating right around the time of the announcement that NY might be on the shortlist.

Even if other companies were eligible for most of the deal, the fact that even a small part of it might have been specific to Amazon meant that the Foxconn story and fallout became a relevant part of the discussion