Statehood for Puerto Rico and DC?

[lpetrich]

D.C. statehood hits a snag in the Senate - POLITICO
Four Senate Democrats are not on board with DC statehood:

1-Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), who co-sponsored D.C. statehood legislation the last go around: "I supported D.C. statehood so I haven't really studied this bill enough to know whether I'm going to sponsor it or not."

2-Sen. Angus King (I-Maine): "I'm not signed on yet. I'm still sort of pondering it. There are just other issues that I'm more engaged in at this point. I haven't really dug into it."

3-Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.V.): "We're just still discussing it. I haven't really gotten into any of that -- I have so much other stuff going on."

4-Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.): "Like a lot of things like this, I want to see the details. This is pretty straightforward, but in general I feel that every American has a right to representation in the United States Congress. And there are a lot of folks that live here in D.C. There are a lot of options to do that ... I think our democracy is best served when folks have representation in the United States Congress."

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) has not stated anything on this issue.

 

[lpetrich]

The D.C. Statehood Gambit - WSJ - Wall Street Journal editorial - The latest House Democratic power grab is unconstitutional.

As Steve Scalise is the latest to show, it would be easier if the GOP just said they didn’t want D.C. to have two senators - The Washington Post
Rep. SS's arguments:

The first was that D.C. can’t be a state, under the constraints of the Constitution. ...

Scalise’s second argument was even weaker. It centered on the idea that the city was incapable of governing itself, for three reasons.

The first is that the city’s government “relies heavily on Congress to ensure its financial solvency.” ...

The second way in which Scalise tried to undermine D.C.'s ability to govern itself was by noting the recent increase in violent crime. ...

Scalise’s third argument against D.C.'s ability to self-govern was the rate of corruption in the city. As one columnist wrote in 2017, D.C. is the “most corrupt” place in the country. Oh, my apologies, I misread that. That column, which appeared in the New Orleans Advocate, was describing Louisiana as the most corrupt state in the union. The state has consistently scored poorly on the metric, suggesting that perhaps Scalise simply doesn’t want competition.

...
This, at long last, brings us to Scalise’s third overall reason to reject D.C. statehood.

“Democrats want D.C. statehood,” his memo reads, “in order to gain two more Senate seats and circumvent the filibuster and solidify their control of the Legislative Branch.”

These Are The Wildest Republican Arguments Against D.C. Statehood

Rep. Guy Reschenthaler (R-Pa.) said in a House Rules Committee meeting that D.C.’s representatives in Congress would be akin to “super delegates” who live so close to the Capitol that they are “embedded in the committee process.”

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) claimed D.C., with a population of just under 700,000, “wouldn’t even qualify as a singular congressional district,” while Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), whose state has a population of around 580,000, stood behind her.

House Minority Leader Steve Scalise homed in on D.C.’s crime rate in a memo arguing district leaders “can't perform basic governmental duties like protecting its residents from criminals,” though commentators noted Scalise’s home state of Louisiana has some of the highest violent crime rates in the nation.

Rep. Jody Hice (R-Ga.) apologized last month after incorrectly claiming during a House Oversight Committee hearing that D.C. would be “the only state… without a car dealership,” later stating he has “no idea where it is” when told D.C. does have car dealerships.

Rep. Glenn Grothmann (R-Wisc.), repeating an argument often made by Senate Republicans during last year’s push for statehood, argued against statehood last month by pointing to D.C.’s lack of manufacturing, agriculture and mining.

...
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) opposes the bill, telling Forbes he supports a proposal to make D.C. a part of Maryland, which would give residents a voting member of the House but deprive them of senators. Other moderates, like Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), declined to stake out a position.

“This legislation violates the 23rd Amendment and is nothing more than a partisan power grab from Speaker Pelosi and her socialist allies to add two more Democrats to the Senate,” Scalise said in his memo, the central argument Republicans have made against statehood.

 

[ZiprHead]

On February 22, 1889, outgoing President Cleveland signed an omnibus bill that divided the Territory of Dakota in half. North Dakota and South Dakota became states simultaneously on November 2, 1889. President Harrison had the papers shuffled to obscure which one was signed first and the order went unrecorded.[12] The bill also enabled the people in the new Territories of North Dakota and South Dakota, as well as the older territories of Montana and Washington, to write state constitutions and elect state governments. The four new states would be admitted into the Union in nine months. This plan cut Democratic New Mexico out of statehood and split Republican Dakota Territory into two new Republican states. Rather than two new Republican states and two new Democratic states that Congress had considered the previous year, the omnibus bill created three new Republican states and one new Democratic state that Republicans thought they would capture. The Dakota Territory was divided into the states of North Dakota and South Dakota on November 2, 1889. [13]

 Dakota Territory

 

[lpetrich]

DC statehood: House passes bill that would make Washington, DC, 51st state - CNNPolitics

The legislation now faces an uphill fight in the Senate, where it is unlikely to get enough Republican support to clear a 60-vote threshold for passage.

It's unclear whether even every Senate Democrat would support the measure. Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia indicated on Thursday that he is undecided on the DC statehood bill.

"I got so many things on my plate that I haven't even gotten to that yet," he told CNN when asked if he supports it.

So it's now up to the Senate. It will be hard to use reconciliation on it, and it will be hard to find 10 Republicans that support it. So it will be necessary to end the filibuster to pass it.

H.R.51 - 117th Congress (2021-2022): Washington, D.C. Admission Act | Congress.gov | Library of Congress - now listed as passing the House.
A curious anomaly in the vote for it is that AOC and Rashida Tlaib were the only two Democrats not to vote for it. The two are cosponsors of it and they had voted to advance the bill to a vote, so they may have had some business that got in the way or some other such slipup.


House of Representatives Passes DC Statehood Bill from 2020 - shows a map of the shrunken-down Federal district. Unlike DC, it will have only one full-time resident: the President.

 

[Rhea]

A curious anomaly in the vote for it is that AOC and Rashida Tlaib were the only two Democrats not to vote for it. The two are cosponsors of it and they had voted to advance the bill to a vote, so they may have had some business that got in the way or some other such slipup.

I am guessing it is a maneuver to keep voting control if something happens to kick it backwards.

 

[lpetrich]

Sen. Joe Manchin doesn't support D.C. statehood bill, wants constitutional amendment - The Washington Post

Manchin cited findings from the Justice Department under Presidents Ronald Reagan and Jimmy Carter and comments from then-Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy in reaching his decision.

“They all came to the same conclusion: If Congress wants to make D.C. a state, it should propose a constitutional amendment. It should propose a constitutional amendment and let the people of America vote,” Manchin said in a radio interview with Hoppy Kercheval of West Virginia’s MetroNews, the full audio of which was provided to The Washington Post by Manchin’s staff.

But the current proposal gets around that difficulty by keeping a Federal district but shrinking it down to the Washington Mall and some nearby buildings, like the Congress building, the Supreme Court building, and the White House.

 

[Derec]

Why not just give DC back to Maryland, like the rest of the original DC was given back to Virginia?


That would do away with "taxation without representation", as Washington, MD residents would vote for Maryland senators and would be part of Maryland congressional districts.

Maybe keep only a small federal district consisting of White House, Congress etc. with no actual residents other than the First Family. And they can be legally treated as either residents of Maryland or of their home state. Don't presidents already vote in their home states anyway?

 

[lpetrich]

dylan matthews on Twitter: "I don’t think Congressional leadership has really internalized ..." / Twitter

I don’t think Congressional leadership has really internalized that if they don’t admit DC and PR, they’ll lose the Senate until at least 2030

And if they don’t do a strong redistricting bill they’ll lose the House until the next Republican president’s first midterm

Obviously you can’t message the bills that way but I see little indication that, in private, ppl in the admin and Congressional leadership understand how fucked they are

The point about PR not being solid blue is well taken. But I don’t think holding a binding statehood referendum and implementing residents’ choice is at all “neocolonial”

The claim that a constitutional convention would better reflect the will of the people than a plebiscite doesn’t really make sense to me.

Then
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter: "People really need to stop conflating ..." / Twitter

People really need to stop conflating DC and Puerto Rico statehood as the same issue.

And approaching Puerto Rico’s status as a matter of party advantage is both neocolonial and mistaken.

Puerto Rico’s elected delegate to Congress caucuses w/ the *Republican Party,* not Dems.

A lot of people don’t even know that Puerto Rico doesn’t have traditional Dem/GOP parties.

PR political parties largely revolve around status w/ complexity on left-right history.

It’s incorrect to assume it’ll go Dem, and ppl should really examine why they make that assumption

Self-determination in Puerto Rico shouldn’t come down to a simple ballot referendum - a process that states use to resolve questions like dog racing or cannabis & are easily challenged.

Determination of status, citizenship, and decolonization merit a constitutional convention.

I think that AOC wants something more than a single vote, more like a thorough discussion, especially that there doesn't seem to be much of a consensus among Puerto Ricans about what to do. What exactly would statehood involve? Independence? Whatever status that they might want?

 

[TomC]

Why not just give DC back to Maryland, like the rest of the original DC was given back to Virginia?

Do Maryland residents generally want that?

I'm in Indiana, I'd hugely object to having the U.S. Capitol move here. I realize that Maryland is different, having been a suburb of D.C. for a long time. But still, maybe they don't want it.
Tom

 

[Rhea]

I read a good piece in the times explaining why they do NOT want it.

I don’t think there’s a “back” to go back to at this point. The people are not Marylanders, and MAryland has no special affection for the region. It should be its own state.

And, now.

 

[Swammerdami]

Have the new flags been designed? I think the 51-star arrangement looks awkward; we should go straight to 52.

Fifty-one stars:

         * * * * * * * *                              * * * * * * * * *
        * * * * * * * * *                              * * * * * * * *
         * * * * * * * *                or            * * * * * * * * *
        * * * * * * * * *                              * * * * * * * *
         * * * * * * * *                              * * * * * * * * *
        * * * * * * * * *                              * * * * * * * *



Fifty-two stars:

          *   *   *   *   *   *                   *   *   *   *   *   *   *
        *   *   *   *   *   *   *                   *   *   *   *   *   *
          *   *   *   *   *   *                   *   *   *   *   *   *   *
        *   *   *   *   *   *   *      or           *   *   *   *   *   *
          *   *   *   *   *   *                   *   *   *   *   *   *   *
        *   *   *   *   *   *   *                   *   *   *   *   *   *
          *   *   *   *   *   *                   *   *   *   *   *   *   *
        *   *   *   *   *   *   *                   *   *   *   *   *   *

... the shrunken-down Federal district. Unlike DC, it will have only one full-time resident: the President.

Have Joe and Jill been having marital difficulties?

 

[lpetrich]

Have the new flags been designed? ...

Not officially, I'm sure, but I've seen some unofficial ones.

 List of flags of the United States

... the shrunken-down Federal district. Unlike DC, it will have only one full-time resident: the President.

Have Joe and Jill been having marital difficulties?

No, I goofed. I should have stated "... it will have a tiny number of full-time residents: the President and whatever family members move in with him (or maybe someday, her)."

The Vice President also has an official residence,  Number One Observatory Circle, though it is well outside the proposed new Federal area.

 

[lpetrich]

 Flag of the United States,  List of flags of the United States

The stars are pentagrams rather than hexagrams because that's what's easier to sew.

Originally, the flag was to have 1 star and 1 stripe per state. That was originally 13 each, and in 1795, that was bumped up to 15 each. But in 1818, that number was bumped up to 20, and that would have meant a *lot* of stripes. So they reverted to 13 stripes while keeping a star for each state.

Flag designs have been created for these numbers of states: 13, 15, 20, 21, 23 to 38, 43 to 46, 48 to 50. Most designs have used rectangular grids, but some are circular and some use big stars formed out of little ones.

 

[lpetrich]

US lawmakers urge binding vote on Puerto Rico status | AP News

A group of mostly Democratic congress members, including the House majority leader, on Thursday proposed a binding plebiscite to decide whether Puerto Rico should become a state or gain some sort of independence.

The draft proposal unveiled at an online news conference would commit Congress to accepting Puerto Rico into the United States if voters on the island approve it. But even if the plan were to pass the Democratic-led House, the proposal appears to have little chance in the Senate, where Republicans have long opposed statehood.

Voters also could choose outright independence or independence with free association, whose terms would be defined following negotiations over foreign affairs, U.S. citizenship and use of the U.S. dollar, said Rep. Darren Soto of Florida.

If no majority emerges, a second round of voting would be held between the top two alternatives.

Good that they include a possible runoff round.

No overwhelming majority for or against statehood emerged in earlier referendums. The last was held during the November 2020 general elections, with 53% of votes for statehood and 47% against, with only a little more than half of registered voters participating.

AOC has called those referendums little better than polls.

The status of Puerto Rico has long been a contentious issue among Puerto Ricans themselves, it must be noted.

“Nobody can deny that the current status of Puerto Rico is undemocratic,” said Gov. Pedro Pierluisi, whose New Progressive Party has long pushed for the island to become the 51st U.S. state.

The main opposition Popular Democratic Party, which supports the status quo, rejected the proposed plebiscite because it does not include Puerto Rico’s current political status.

“This project excludes those who think differently,” said party president José Luis Dalmau, who is also president of Puerto Rico’s Senate and vowed to fight the proposal. “This is a lack of respect.”

 

[lpetrich]

A potentially troublesome issue with DC and PR statehood is how big the House of Representatives is going to be. The number of Reps is currently capped at 435, and if DC and/or PR are admitted as states, some states will lose seats.

•  Party divisions of United States Congresses
• Party Divisions | US House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives
• U.S. Senate: Party Division

The House reached its present size in 1913, and temporarily increased to 437 over 1957 - 1961 when Alaska and Hawaii were admitted.

H.R.51 - 117th Congress (2021-2022): Washington, D.C. Admission Act | Congress.gov | Library of Congress
From the text of the bill,

(d) Effect of admission on House of Representatives membership.—

(1) PERMANENT INCREASE IN NUMBER OF MEMBERS.—Effective with respect to the Congress during which the State is admitted into the Union and each succeeding Congress, the House of Representatives shall be composed of 436 Members, including any Members representing the State.

(2) INITIAL NUMBER OF REPRESENTATIVES FOR STATE.—Until the taking effect of the first apportionment of Members occurring after the admission of the State into the Union, the State shall be entitled to one Representative in the House of Representatives upon its admission into the Union.

(3) APPORTIONMENT OF MEMBERS RESULTING FROM ADMISSION OF STATE.—

(A) APPORTIONMENT.—Section 22(a) of the Act entitled “An Act to provide for the fifteenth and subsequent decennial censuses and to provide for apportionment of Representatives in Congress”, approved June 18, 1929 (2 U.S.C. 2a(a)), is amended by striking “the then existing number of Representatives” and inserting “436 Representatives”.

(B) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by subparagraph (A) shall apply with respect to the first regular decennial census conducted after the admission of the State into the Union and each subsequent regular decennial census.

So the US House will have 436 Reps, meaning that no existing state will lose Reps.

I think that they'd likely do that also with Puerto Rico, and from its population, that territory would likely have 4 Reps.

 

[lpetrich]

Bianca Graulau on Instagram: “Will Puerto Rico finally see a decolonization process? Some say the bill is a non-starter in the Senate. Link in bio & stories.”

Bianca Graulau on Instagram: “Act 22 is the tax break inviting wealthy people to move to Puerto Rico. Some communities say it’s having the effect of displacing them. My full interview with @aoc linked in bio and stories.”

Bianca Graulau on Twitter: "House members are proposing a vote to finally resolve the issue of Puerto Rico's status.

I talked to @AOC about the challenges the bill faces in the Senate, about Act 22 (the tax break inviting wealthy ppl to PR), and la junta (the oversight board). (link)" / Twitter

Bianca Graulau on Twitter: "House members just announced the Puerto Rico Status Act. They're proposing a vote between the options of: statehood, independence and free association.

The territorial option would be left out. They're calling it a 'historic' move to decolonize PR. Interview with @AOC coming up." / Twitter

Bianca Graulau on Twitter: "AOC: "Puerto Rico is a neo-colony."

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez discusses the Puerto Rico Status Act. If passed, the bill would call for a binding vote where Puerto Ricans would choose between independence, free association or statehood. (link) via @YouTube" / Twitter

Bianca Graulau on Twitter: "Act 22 is the tax break inviting wealthy people to move to Puerto Rico. As beneficiaries acquire multiple properties, some local communities say they’re being displaced.
Here’s my full interview with @AOC :
(links)" / Twitter

 

[lpetrich]

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter: "“We are here to finally end second-class citizenship of Puerto Ricans in the United States.”
Watch Rep. AOC's remarks on the Puerto Rico Status Act, which would honor a decolonization process where the people of Puerto Rico can elect to choose their status. (vid link)" / Twitter

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter: "Thank you to @LeaderHoyer, @NydiaVelazquez, @RepJenniffer, @RepDarrenSoto, @RepRubenGallego, and @GovPierluisi for working with us to ensure that Puerto Ricans can determine their own future." / Twitter

She said that she never expected to see the day when Puerto Rico's colonial status might come to an end. She also stated that past votes on the island's status have not been binding on the US, which she said is a big problem with them. Furthermore, this vote will respect all three non-territorial options: statehood, free association, and independence. She says that what's going on here is more about process than about any specific result, and that she hopes that Puerto Ricans' choices will be respected.

Her colleagues:

Rep. Nydia Velazquez on Twitter: "For decades solving the Puerto Rican colonial conundrum has been at a standstill.
However, we announced today that we have an agreement on a way forward to decolonize Puerto Rico.
This proposal will give the people of Puerto Rico the ability to decide their political future. (pic link)" / Twitter

Steny Hoyer on Twitter: "I have long been an advocate of self-determination for the people of Puerto Rico. Today, I convened a bipartisan group of my colleagues & @GovPierluisi to announce a historic consensus bill to determine Puerto Rico's political status. Read more here: (links)" / Twitter

Natural Resources Committee on Twitter: "Today is a historic day for the people of Puerto Rico.
Chair @RepRaulGrijalva, @LeaderHoyer, @NydiaVelazquez, @RepAOC, @RepJenniffer, @RepDarrenSoto and @GovPierluisi came together to share the discussion draft of their Puerto Rico Status Act.
#ListenToPuertoRico (pic link)" / Twitter

 

[lpetrich]

• Leader Hoyer, Bipartisan Group of Members of Congress Announce Consensus Bill on Puerto Rico Political Status, Launch Public Input Phase of Historic Collaborative Effort | The Office of Majority Leader Steny Hoyer
• Puerto Rico Political Status | Committee Activity | The House Committee on Natural Resources
• FactSheet_The Puerto Rico Status Act Discussion Draft.pdf
• DISCUSSION DRAFT Puerto Rico Status Act - DISCUSSION_DRAFT_Puerto_Rico_Status_Act.pdf - a draft version of the bill

Earlier bills:

• H.R.2070 - 117th Congress (2021-2022): Puerto Rico Self-Determination Act of 2021 | Congress.gov | Library of Congress - Rep. Velazquez, Nydia M. [D-NY-7] (Introduced 03/18/2021) - This bill establishes a process for the people of Puerto Rico to vote on the political status (e.g., statehood) of the territory. Congress may ratify the decision through a joint resolution
• H.R.1522 - 117th Congress (2021-2022): Puerto Rico Statehood Admission Act | Congress.gov | Library of Congress - Rep. Soto, Darren [D-FL-9] (Introduced 03/02/2021) - This bill establishes a process for the admission of Puerto Rico into the union as a state, on an equal footing with all other states, based on a majority vote of the people of Puerto Rico

• Authorizes a federally sponsored plebiscite to resolve Puerto Rico’s political status.
• Specifies and defines Puerto Rico’s non-territorial status options – Statehood, Independence, and Sovereignty in Free Association with the United States.
• Provides for an objective, nonpartisan, federally funded voter education campaign leading up to the vote.
• Establishes a process and timeline for the U.S. Department of Justice to review the voter education materials and plebiscite ballot design.
• Authorizes necessary funds to carry out an initial plebiscite and, if necessary, a runoff plebiscite.
• Describes the transition to and implementation of each status option in sufficient detail for eligible voters in Puerto Rico to make an informed choice.
• Ensures implementation of the option that is chosen by a majority of eligible voters in Puerto Rico.

The announcement page has statements from ouse Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (MD-05), Natural Resources Committee Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (AZ-03), Committee on Small Business Chair Nydia Velázquez (NY-07), Resident Commissioner Jenniffer González-Colón (PR-AL), Rep. Darren Soto (FL-09), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14), Governor Pedro R. Pierluisi

The committee-activity page contains a Spanish version of its text.

 

[lpetrich]

AOC: "Puerto Rico is a neo-colony." - YouTube
Bianca Graulau interviewing AOC

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez discusses the Puerto Rico Status Act. If passed, the bill would call for a binding vote where Puerto Ricans would choose between independence, free association or statehood.

She noted that some US territories are in free association, most recently Palau, some Pacific islands near Indonesia and the Philippines. She also likes that the vote won't be yes/no on either statehood or independence, that it will give equal status to the three options.

BG then mentioned continuing territorial status, an option omitted because both statehood and independence advocates consider it continued colonialism. Some Puerto Ricans want to continue territorial status, but with some improvements here and there, but AOC doesn't like that option. But that might eventually be put on the ballot.

AOC conceded that this bill was a compromise, that its supporters didn't get all that they wanted in it. Like no presumption of wanting statehood, and no constitutional convention, what AOC wanted.

As to getting the bill through the Senate, AOC notes that this bill is bipartisan, with some Republicans supporting it.

Then discussing Act 22, which states that people who move there get to pay 0% capital gains tax. This is to persuade rich people to invest in Puerto Rico, and it has led to things like buying apartment complexes and kicking out the people already there. AOC calls it "horrifying" and part of the continued "colonization" of PR. She mentioned people using that island as a tax dodge, moving there for 6 months out of each year.

 

[steve_bank]

I do not want PR as a state. They are patently unable to manage their own affairs, on an island of about 5 million people. They can not maintain the power grid. It will be a federal sink hole. It already is.

If made a te in the long run I do not think the PR people will like it. A simple example is current suppression of cock fighting, a long established PR tradition. If t becomes a state it means any American citizen can move there and buy land or open a busness. There will be a inevitable culture clash.