PR a step closer to statehood

[ecoli]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/puerto-rico-votes-on-whether-to-change-relationship-with-us-elects-governor-and-legislators/2012/11/06/d87278ae-288b-11e2-aaa5-ac786110c486_story.html

 

Honestly, I think this is probably bigger news than Obama getting re-elected.

 

Puerto Rico has long been a US territory but has been deserving of statehood for some time and it seems as though the popular vote has finally swung that way as well. Obviously the measure has to be submitted and approved by congress before statehood is granted and internal politics will no doubt slow things down. I wonder if they'll be any opposition at here. Probably many Americans don't even realize that Puerto Ricans are already US citizens, they like the idea of 50 states thanks to the nice, round number and many are xenophobic particular to the latin american world.

 

Anyway, congratulations to PR

[ydoaPs]

Anyway, congratulations to PR

 

If they got the Congressional approval needed to become a state with this Congress, I may have to change my trousers. Puerto Rico is overwhelmingly blue, and their statehood would mean 2 Senators, 5 or 6 Congressmen, and 7 or 8 Electoral College votes. There's no way this Congress will allow such a shift into the blue; far too few of the people that made this the most obstructionist Congress in US history have been removed from office.

[Phi for All]

I don't know much about why Puerto Rico remains a territory instead of a state. I would think we would welcome more taxpayers and a full state in Latin America, and I would think the increased taxation on the population and businesses would be offset by the same kind of economic surge that Hawaii felt when it became a state. I love the similar climate of the Yucatan peninsula, and with the crime surge in Mexico I would prefer vacationing in a US territory. '

 

I have a milestone anniversary coming up. I'll check out Puerto Rico as an island getaway.

[ecoli]

If they got the Congressional approval needed to become a state with this Congress, I may have to change my trousers. Puerto Rico is overwhelmingly blue, and their statehood would mean 2 Senators, 5 or 6 Congressmen, and 7 or 8 Electoral College votes. There's no way this Congress will allow such a shift into the blue; far too few of the people that made this the most obstructionist Congress in US history have been removed from office.

 

I'm not so sure... many latin americans are conservative christian on social issues and the Republicans are probably now realizing they can't win national elections without courting minority voters. Anyway, it seems likely that the issue won't come up in the current congress.

[akh]

I'm not so sure... many latin americans are conservative christian on social issues and the Republicans are probably now realizing they can't win national elections without courting minority voters. Anyway, it seems likely that the issue won't come up in the current congress.

 

Bingo!

 

They even said it themselves as they were wiping away the tears after Romney's concession speech. Literally within minutes! Unfortunately, this will do nothing to rip them from the grips of the fundamentalists.

 

 

[ecoli]

Bingo!

 

They even said it themselves as they were wiping away the tears after Romney's concession speech. Literally within minutes! Unfortunately, this will do nothing to rip them from the grips of the fundamentalists.

 

There will be selection effects, though. Fundamentalist ideas can't survive if those ideas are in the minority, nationally. Republicans can't ignore urban areas anymore. I expect Marco Rubio could be a contender for 2016 P or VP pick.

[Anders Hoveland]

Yeah, the irony is that most Hispanics vigorously oppose abortion (and any form of contraception it seems judging by the size of their families ) yet they still vote for the Democratic Party. If the issue of abortion was put to a public referendum, I think there would be a very different outcome.