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Should Puerto Rico be a state of the Union?

Are you for or against admitting Puerto Rico as a state?

  • Yes, I'm for!

    Votes: 12 57.1%
  • No, I'm against!

    Votes: 9 42.9%

  • Total voters
    21
Americans have to take into consideration that Puerto Rico (PR) is a different nation culturally speaking, Puerto Ricans are more liberal, most are for government programs, intervention.... which is the main reason why they don't want to be independent, there's too much dependency of the island on federal transfers.

This is different from a Blue state how?



But at the same time, they're a very proud people, every time a Puerto Rican represents the island well or a national team wins a medal or beats the USA team, they celebrate like crazy, so deep inside, if PR had a solid economy making people less dependent on the US, independence would have much more support.

You can blame those who got angry when PR flew the US flag at the first Olympics they participated in when it became a territory.


I think the best solution for both countries is a free association agreement, the United States would reduce part of its expenses and no longer have a colony in the Caribbean, while Puerto Rico would gain the autonomy it needs to compete in the global economy.

Its not a separate country, its a territory, like Guam and the US virgin islands. The difference being that Guam and the VI can vote in a Presidential election.
 
The difference being that Guam and the VI can vote in a Presidential election.

Incorrect, the residents of US territories can not vote for the President, but they can participate in the primaries.

Why is it that people in American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands are allowed to elect the delegates who choose the nominees, even if those voters aren’t eligible to cast ballots in the presidential election?

Here’s the short answer: each political party has decided to give people in the U.S. territories a role in the nominating process.

This decision isn't governed by federal statute or by the Constitution but rather by party rules.


Why Guam can help nominate, but can?t vote for president - Decision '08- msnbc.com


BTW, voter turnout was low for the 2008 Democratic presidential primary:

Low turnout

Election officials said turnout was extremely low, perhaps 400,000 out of nearly 3 million registered voters. So while polls showed Clinton holding a lead, she was likely to win a majority of the commonwealth’s 55 delegates but not get a huge influx of popular votes.

“Even though there is some enthusiasm, you cannot compare this with a general election in Puerto Rico,” said former San Juan Mayor Hector Luis Acevedo, the local representative of the Democratic Party.

Statehood debate hung over vote

Puerto Rico’s politics is dominated by two local parties, known as red and blue, divided over the issue of statehood.

Along those lines, Clinton often referred to “bringing red and blue together,” but Puerto Rico Senate President Kenneth McClintock, co-chairman of her campaign, said the local parties would not be working to get out the vote because there was no political benefit.

“The State Elections Commission has put very little advertising, contrary to what they usually do," he McClintock said. “We’ve had some factors against us.”

In addition, the smaller Partido Independista, which advocates full independence for the island, held a public protest of the vote Sunday in San Juan. It discouraged followers from participating in the contest because the commonwealth does not have a vote in the general election.

Acevedo and McClintock both said that even if local voters were not interested in the outcome, the attention that had been paid to Puerto Rico by the candidates and the national press would help the islands.

“The Puerto Rican voter and the Puerto Rican citizens will enjoy more benefits, more attention, more friends in the Senate of the United States no matter who wins,” Acevedo said. “We will have more attention to our problems and to the solutions than we will have had if we not have this primary in Puerto Rico.”

Clinton easily wins Puerto Rico - Decision '08- msnbc.com
 
I lived in San Juan for a couple of years. I really enjoyed it and gained a lot of respect for the PR's. I heard it said that they have a sort of cultural scizophrenia. Discussions with my PR friends tended to conclude that the welfare state that we (US) allowed on the island has turned it from an agricultural economy with fairly high employment to one where most people would just as soon be on the dole as work on a banana farm or sugar cane farm. They have had for decades major tax incentives to bring industry to the island. But of course if you manufacture it in PR you have to ship it to your market from an island 1000 miles from Miami. The program has largely been successful though.

As to the question should they be a state...I think it's time we offered them a choice between statehood with its requisite responsibilities or simply ally, in other words losing their commonwealth status.
 
I lived in San Juan for a couple of years. I really enjoyed it and gained a lot of respect for the PR's. I heard it said that they have a sort of cultural scizophrenia. Discussions with my PR friends tended to conclude that the welfare state that we (US) allowed on the island has turned it from an agricultural economy with fairly high employment to one where most people would just as soon be on the dole as work on a banana farm or sugar cane farm. They have had for decades major tax incentives to bring industry to the island. But of course if you manufacture it in PR you have to ship it to your market from an island 1000 miles from Miami. The program has largely been successful though.

As to the question should they be a state...I think it's time we offered them a choice between statehood with its requisite responsibilities or simply ally, in other words losing their commonwealth status.

I say, let the PR's become "Free".:) I don't think the Spanish will try and make them a Colony again. :lol: And we've enough Welfare Leeches of our own to deal with.
 
if they wanted to be free they would be and if they wanted to be a part of us they would be they are in the best position possible they get our protection with out all of the political greff
 
Some information regarding Puerto Rico to understand the reality of the country:

I say yes only if Puerto Rico first makes english its official language, makes it mandatory to teach children in english and starts a program to teach adults english who do not know how to speak english and makes all their ballots and government forms in english. Despite what many globalist pieces of **** say the US is still a english speaking country,there should be no exceptions regardless if the the territory in question originally spoke another language.
 
I say yes only if Puerto Rico first makes english its official language, makes it mandatory to teach children in english and starts a program to teach adults english who do not know how to speak english and makes all their ballots and government forms in english. Despite what many globalist pieces of **** say the US is still a english speaking country,there should be no exceptions regardless if the the territory in question originally spoke another language.

Would you like to be called a piece of whatever for your ideas? :roll:
If you want to be respected, then respect other people.

Back on topic, PR is an hispanic nation, Puerto Ricans have their own idiosincrasy (different cultural values), and since the US is not a multinational state, is better for both countries to solve the colonial political status of PR with a free association agreement, the island would become a republic associated with the US, both nations would win. PR gets the autonomy it needs and the US saves money by reducing federal transfers, but keeping a solid ally in the Caribbean.
 
Would you like to be called a piece of whatever for your ideas? :roll:

If you want to be respected, then respect other people.

Demanding that other people who want to live in your nation speak your nation's language is not disrespect. I could care less what liberal scum or and other trash view my ideas as. The US is a english speaking country regardless of what globalist pieces of **** and those who toss the salad of illegals say, so it makes sense that any territory we make a state speaks English.
 
I am just wondering why we even still have them as a protectorate... or something of the United States.
PR is an 'external possession", like the USVI, Guam, etc.

Lots of counties have possessions that are not 'states' or 'provinces' or whatever -- Canada, the UK, Australlia, Denmark and France are just a few examples.
 
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