art ivSection. 3. New States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union; but no new State shall be formed or erected within the Jurisdiction of any other State; nor any State be formed by the Junction of two or more States, or Parts of States, without the Consent of the Legislatures of the States concerned as well as of the Congress.
The Congress shall have Power to dispose of and make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the United States; and nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed as to Prejudice any Claims of the United States, or of any particular State.
Puerto Rico is territory of the US. Therefore, Congress gets to decide what to do with it. The official head of state of Puerto Rico is the president of the US. Important to me is that since the US acquired Puerto Rico after the Spanish War, that Puerto Ricans were required to participate in the US draft in any war. They were, therefore, draftees in every draftee war starting with WWII.
There is no denying that they are a strategic piece of property in the Carribbean. Personally, I wish we'd kept Panama. Having spent some time in Puerto Rico during my military career, I think it is an awesome island. Having been to both Hawaii and Puerto Rico, I prefer PR. I've no doubt it's a valuable piece of real estate.
They have voted to be included into the US. I think it is the right thing to do to have them become our 51st state.
I also wish General Hull hadn't been such an incompetent in 1812, and that we hadn't given back any defeated North American land south of the border after we'd taken it.
Thank you for your kind words, Padre.