Bankrupt Puerto Rico Votes for Statehood

By Douglas V. Gibbs
Author, Speaker, Instructor, Radio Host

I have been against a bailout of Puerto Rico. Their economic conditions are of their own making, and a result of the fact that they have been under Democrat Party leadership. Perhaps, that was a part of the drive for voters to once again vote in favor of Puerto Rico becoming the 51st State of the United States of America. They voted in favor in 2012, but Congress ignored the vote because a large number of blank ballots made the American lawmakers feel that the drive for statehood was not an unequivocal vote in their opinion. So, here we are again in June of 2017, trying again. The voter turnout was among the lowest of any election, and the lowest of any election on the island since 1967but again the majority of the voters who turned out voted in favor of statehood.

Nonetheless, Puerto Rico's Governor Ricardo Rossello has proudly announced that Puerto Rico has once again chosen statehood.

Now, it goes to Congress. . . the same place the 2012 bid was stopped.

Members of both parties have historically supported Puerto Rico being added to the union, and based on the rules of territorial ownership by the federal government as spelled out in Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution, something needs to be done.  Either, the Caribbean island needs to become a State, or a sovereign nation.

A territory since 1899 as a result of the Spanish-American War, it was 100 years ago that a eferendum was established granting U.S. citizenship to Puerto Ricans.

Over the last decade the economic condition of Puerto Rico has been dire, and nearly a half million islanders have headed for the mainland to establish a new home.

Statehood will change quite a few things.  They will be granted Senators and representation in the House of Representatives, and will no longer be exempt from the U.S. federal income tax (with representation comes taxation, apparently).

For Democrats it would likely give them more strength in Congress where they are currently outnumbered, so they welcome the possibility.  The GOP has historically supported statehood for Puerto Rico and will probably go along with it.  As for Puerto Rico, it's a way of getting their hands on federal funding that will increase if they become a State. . . a pile of money they are figuring will help them out of their economic crisis.

The thing is, it isn't a big pile of money they need, it's abandoning liberal left economic policies.

-- Political Pistachio Conservative News and Commentary