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The question of statehood for colonies and other such areas of the US has been talked of before for a few and now we have District of Columbia statehood movement
The District of Columbia is a federal district under the direct jurisdiction of the United States Congress. Statehood would grant the District voting representation in the Congress and full control over local affairs. For most of the modern statehood movement, the new state's name would have been "New Columbia", although the Washington, D.C. Admission Act of 2019 refers to the proposed state as "Washington, Douglass Commonwealth."
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The population of Puerto Rico in 2015 was over three million people and larger than that of 21 states. Statehood would award Puerto Rico two senators and five representatives, but it's unlikely a Republican-controlled Congress would acknowledge the referendum
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America needs way more than a couple extra stars. We need to talk about splitting states up. Starting with statehood for the Cardinal Cities of Chicago, Los Angeles, Houston, and New York, and dusting off the State of Jefferson proposal.
Electorally, it may well be a wash, with the additional ten Senators being split equally between the Republicans and Democrats. New York City would remain blue, but New York State (henceforth known as New Yorkshire) could go purple?
Splitting up the larger states would also affect the electoral college, making it somewhat more balanced demographically.
Use what is abundant and build to last
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For forum readers who might not be familiar with the process by which states are added to the United States, Wikipedia has an entry:
The Admission to the Union Clause of the United States Constitution, often called the New States Clause, found at Article IV, Section 3, Clause 1, authorizes the Congress to admit new states into the United States beyond the thirteen already in existence at the time the Constitution went into effect.
I needed this refresher, because I had (somehow) conflated addition of a new State with the much more difficult process to amend the Constitution.
What I recall from discussions about this idea is that is is highly unlikely that only one state will be admitted to the union, due to political considerations.
However, the recent episode of moving federal troops into the District because it is not a State has (most likely) motivated the present inquiry.
(th)
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Restore Franklin!
Let's Go to Mars...Google on: Fast Track to Mars blogspot.com
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Give DC statehood, and move the capital and all federal agencies to a new federal district somewhere more central.
Use what is abundant and build to last
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Half way there as House Democrats pass DC statehood bill Friday
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New stars on the American flag? Fresh hope as Puerto Rico and DC push for statehood
The anomaly illuminates America’s long unaddressed colonial history that leaves five territories floating in constitutional limbo, their residents – most of them people of color – effectively treated as second-class citizens.
There are five inhabited US territories: American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. Apart from American Samoa, people born in the territories are US citizens and pay federal taxes such as Medicare and social security, though not federal tax on locally sourced income. Each territory sends a delegate to the House who can debate legislation and sit on committees but is not able to actually vote.
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