Puerto Rico status referendum - June 11

[KingSweden]

I support unconditional statehood for PR, and I do not support statehood for D.C.

Puerto Rico has 3 and a half million people and a terrible financial crisis. If they want to be a state, they should be one. The "but Dems!" argument holds zero water. For all we know PR could be a GOP stronghold in 30 years.

[KingSweden]

Yes on the taxes, fixed the number above.

Your argument for denying statehood to PR is nil to begin with anyways. American citizens on American soil that is not D.C. want statehood. They should get it. If we're going to start precluding statehood to fiscal prosperity, then we should start jettisoning fiscally-challenged states from the union. Do we start with Kansas?

It baffles me how many people are so willing to disenfranchise fellow American citizens for any number of perceived shortcomings. Debt. Location. You name it. DC "shouldn't" get it because some time ago people decided it be a federal district and that means some guy's decision hundreds of years ago means it should never be changed and hundreds of thousands of citizens should never get representation. Never mind the fact that at least 2 states with less people than DC get full representation.

Or how Puerto Rico shouldn't get statehood because they have economic problems, despite the island being full of American citizens. Really? Any other excuses to throw out there? They are Americans and they deserve the right to give input into our federal government. It doesn't matter how bad the economic situation is. This should be a fundamental right that transcends all of that.

And no doubt most of the time these excuses come from people who already enjoy full voting rights and representation. Just the usual "i got mine, so screw you" attitude.

Puerto Rico, if it votes for statehood, should be accepted as our 51st state. Full stop. I think there are fair arguments against statehood for D.C. and some of the smaller Pacific territories, primarily that we already have too many tiny states who wield outsized influence in the Senate over more populous ones

[KingSweden]

Puerto Rico, if it votes for statehood, should be accepted as our 51st state. Full stop. I think there are fair arguments against statehood for D.C. and some of the smaller Pacific territories, primarily that we already have too many tiny states who wield outsized influence in the Senate over more populous ones

I can understand some arguments against statehood for DC but I am 100% behind 2 Senators/1 Rep for the district. If they can't get that, which would take a Constitutional amendment, then statehood is the only option and it shouldn't be denied. Although, reasonable levels of autonomy for DC is also an issue statehood would solve. Right now, Congress meddles far too much in their business.

As for the various territories - that is a good point, and I would argue that maybe they deserve representation as a whole, meaning 2 Senators / 1 Rep to represent all the territories. I'm unsure if Puerto Rico should be lumped in together with them, but looking at the combined population of the other territories - Roughly ~375,000 going by Wikipedia, I can see an argument for it at least.

Either way, I still think something should be done. I don't think anyone in America should be deprived of representation like this.

That's an interesting solution I hadn't thought of. It could get tricky with the vast geography of the territories, but you could always merge the USVI to PR and solve part of that problem.

In the near future, I support major self-rule devolution for D.C. Which would solve many of their budget/planning problems. Get Congress out of everything but a handful of matters in the District

[KingSweden]

My view is that while I'd like Puerto Rico to choose statehood and I will advocate strongly for that, I am fine with whatever they choose in the end.

Me too.