What would happen if Congress seriously considered statehood for Puerto Rico?

[Kirkrapine]

For a long time -- perhaps ever since 1898 -- the most important issue in Puerto Rican politics has been the island's future political status: Some wanting independence, some statehood, and some an indefinite continuation of the status quo (in which Puerto Ricans have no votes for Congress or the EC, but also do not pay federal income tax). However, the independence movement is a small remnant nowadays, and in a 2017 referendum, the people voted 97% for statehood.

Which doesn't mean they get it, not unless Congress acts.

I see no downside to letting PR into the Union -- we already have poor states -- but the idea must set the Official-English crowd screaming.

I do acknowledge we would be breaking new ground: No other state was admitted until it had been significantly settled by white Americans and English had become the predominant language. That will never happen in PR -- it was already thoroughly populated when we annexed it; it is part of the Spanish-speaking Latin American Catholic culture and it always will be. Statehood for PR would open the door for statehood for Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands (which would probably be better folded into PR, which is right next door to the USVI).

N.B.: This has nothing to do (directly) with any immigration issue. PRs are already citizens and can legally move to and work on the mainland. Many do, and their only perceptible effect on our culture is West Side Story.

So if Congress were to take up this issue, how would it play out?

 

[lovecraft68]

Never happen because after Trump's treatment of them any senators from there would be democrats so....can't have that.

 

[Kirkrapine]

Never happen because after Trump's treatment of them any senators from there would be democrats so....can't have that.

Well, not necessarily. Neither party now has a presence on the island. We really don't know how PR politics would play out after the status issue were resolved. It's a Catholic island, so there must be many who would vote Republican just out of social conservatism; and of course there's a rich elite who, as on the mainland, would tend Pub and would wield political power far out of proportion to their numbers.

 

[Rightguide]

Never happen.

 

[Kirkrapine]

Never happen.

Why not? Who other than the English-Only crowd would be in opposition?

Can anyone here think of a good reason why PR should not be a state?

Remember, this means the PRs will have to deal with the IRS like the rest of us, and yet they voted for it by 97% They must really want it bad.

 

[phrodeau]

Never happen because after Trump's treatment of them any senators from there would be democrats so....can't have that.

Puerto Rico's representative in Congress is the non-voting Resident Commissioner Jenniffer Gonzalez, who is a Republican.

 

[LadyFunkenstein]

Puerto Rico is run by a federally appointed oversight board (PROMESA to give folks something to google) to insure investors - the very ones that raided that island - get their money. Which party is where isn't relevant.

 

[sharingfantasies]

The US had no business taking over Puerto Rico in the first place. Having done so, it then passed a bunch of tax laws and then ignored the place. It has always seemed the height of ridiculousness to me that we became a country because England would not let the Colonies have a vote in any parliamentary decisions and we turned around and did the same thing to Puerto Rico. Most people that are against the decision that live in PR are afraid of losing their heritage and becoming too Americanized. For those people in the US that are against it, there is concern that having made decisions that hurt PR and kept it down economically, the US would be expected to do something about the level of poverty that currently exists there. On top of many lists is the amount of criminal activity by government officials over the decades that was based on greed.

But what stood out to me from the OP is

their only perceptible effect on our culture is West Side Story

There are a tons of actors and singers that are Puerto Rican. But I would think the first name that would come to mind would be Roberto Clemente. Here is a list for those that don't realize how many Puerto Ricans have affected our lives.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Puerto_Ricans

 

[IG_88]

Where the hell you gonna put that extra star? We aint got no room on our flag man. Think for once! Jeez.

 

[Liar]

Start with shrinking the District of Columbia down to an enclave of the Federal gvmnt buldings, hand the rest over to Maryland and get some 600 000 citizens who live there a proper Congressman. Then we can talk PR.

Where the hell you gonna put that extra star? We aint got no room on our flag man. Think for once! Jeez.

Make it a twofer and combine the Dakotas. Or give Wyoming to Montana. It's not like most people are aware it ever existed anyway.

 

[JohnnySavage]

Start with shrinking the District of Columbia down to an enclave of the Federal gvmnt buldings, hand the rest over to Maryland and get some 600 000 citizens who live there a proper Congressman. Then we can talk PR.

Make it a twofer and combine the Dakotas. Or give Wyoming to Montana. It's not like most people are aware it ever existed anyway.

Article IV, Section 3, Clause 1:

New States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union; but no new State shall be formed or erected within the Jurisdiction of any other State; nor any State be formed by the Junction of two or more States, or Parts of States, without the Consent of the Legislatures of the States concerned as well as of the Congress.

Maryland donated that plot of land once and sure doesn't want it returned in its current condition.

 

[bellisarius]

The OP's 97% in favor of statehood figure is misleading. Less that 25% of the electorate turned out in that the opposition boycotted the referendum over the wording. Past referendums on statehood have all failed. So have referendums for independence so it appears that the population is satisfied with territorial status.

 

[Liar]

Article IV, Section 3, Clause 1:

New States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union; but no new State shall be formed or erected within the Jurisdiction of any other State; nor any State be formed by the Junction of two or more States, or Parts of States, without the Consent of the Legislatures of the States concerned as well as of the Congress.

Maryland donated that plot of land once and sure doesn't want it returned in its current condition.

Hey, what's sensible and what's constitutional are not nessecarily the same thing.

 

[JohnnySavage]

Hey, what's sensible and what's constitutional are not nessecarily the same thing.

I lived in DC for 25 years and the "Statehood for DC" crowd were annoying as hell. DC can't be a State easily, and they currently get a sweetheart deal from the Federal government. There's no way the city could be self-sustaining.

 

[Liar]

I lived in DC for 25 years and the "Statehood for DC" crowd were annoying as hell. DC can't be a State easily, and they currently get a sweetheart deal from the Federal government. There's no way the city could be self-sustaining.

As per my prior post, I don't think DC should be a state. It would be as small and pointless a state as Wyoming or Vermont.

 

[JohnnySavage]

As per my prior post, I don't think DC should be a state. It would be as small and pointless a state as Wyoming or Vermont.

I don't think so either, but I live in West Virginia - which was probably unconstitutional in its creation as well.

 

[Rightguide]

Why not? Who other than the English-Only crowd would be in opposition?

Can anyone here think of a good reason why PR should not be a state?

Remember, this means the PRs will have to deal with the IRS like the rest of us, and yet they voted for it by 97% They must really want it bad.

I explained in detail in the last Puerto Rico thread, look it up here:

https://forum.literotica.com/showpost.php?p=89693185&postcount=15

 

[Kirkrapine]

Where the hell you gonna put that extra star? We aint got no room on our flag man. Think for once! Jeez.

I think the stars have reached critical mass at this point. We should abandon the one-star-per-state custom and go back to the original ring of 13 stars.

 

[Kirkrapine]

Start with shrinking the District of Columbia down to an enclave of the Federal gvmnt buldings, hand the rest over to Maryland and get some 600 000 citizens who live there a proper Congressman. Then we can talk PR.

I think it would make more sense to make a separate and united state of Columbia out of the entire DC metro area, including the MD and VA sides. Every metro area, as a single economy and community, needs a metro government.

 

[Plane_Guy]

They've got a hard enough time handling what's already on their plate...

 

[Kirkrapine]

They've got a hard enough time handling what's already on their plate...

Oh, Congress always has a lot on its, plate, what does that matter?

 

[BotanyBoy]

Oh, Congress always has a lot on its, plate, what does that matter?

Because it never does anything except raise the debt limit so it can make more imaginary money vanish into nothingness .

If it actually started to address some issues things wouldn't be so backed up....but then what would they dangle in front of their voters????

 

[phrodeau]

Where the hell you gonna put that extra star? We aint got no room on our flag man. Think for once! Jeez.

I think the stars have reached critical mass at this point. We should abandon the one-star-per-state custom and go back to the original ring of 13 stars.

The good people of Belgium figured it out.

http://matzav.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/pence-flag.jpg

http://matzav.com/star-mangled-bann...-stars-for-pence-meeting-with-eu-in-brussels/

 

[ryan8558]

The good people of Belgium figured it out.

http://matzav.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/pence-flag.jpg

http://matzav.com/star-mangled-bann...-stars-for-pence-meeting-with-eu-in-brussels/

AH! someone needs better quality control

 

[Mello_SixtyNine]

Puerto Ricans would be nuts to want statehood. Right now, Puerto Rico's state income tax is higher than California's. If they become a state, they will have to start paying Federal income tax as well. They already have 13% unemployment, the burden of having to pay federal income tax as well will just hurt them even more. Also, statehood would stop the inflow of wealth Americans moving to Puerto Rico to live and start businesses.

Here's economist Peter Schiff talking about Puerto Rico's problems.