Cal Thomas: Puerto Rico's sorry state

Fox News ^ | 6/22/2017 | cal Thomas

[cll]

“Puerto Rico, my heart’s devotion. Let it sink back in the ocean.” — West Side Story

The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico is drowning. The island, so popular with tourists, is $123 billion in debt. That’s more debt than the $18 billion bankruptcy filed by the city of Detroit in 2013. In May, San Juan declared a form of bankruptcy after creditors filed lawsuits demanding their money. A federal district judge appointed by Chief Justice John Roberts will handle the case.

How did this happen? Luis Fortuno, former governor of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, who served as president of the New Progressive Party of Puerto Rico (PNP), which advocates for the island to become a U.S. state, believes he knows.

Fortuno was elected in 2009. In a telephone interview from his Washington law office, he tells me that during his one term he cut government expenses by $2 billion and the island’s bond rating went up. “We refinanced the debt on better terms” and by the time he left office in 2013, “we had brought down the budget every year and lowered corporate taxes. People believed they could take risks again.”

[cll]

"Would a Republican Congress and a Republican president ever back statehood for a territory that seems overwhelmingly Democratic and possibly add two senators and one voting House member to that party’s total in Washington?...Fortuno doesn’t believe it is a given that Democrats would win those seats. He draws a distinction between the mostly liberal Puerto Ricans who have left the island for places like New York City and those who remain. He says current residents “are social and economic conservatives,” suggesting Republicans could pick up seats".

[junta]

I guess there is no “magic dirt” in PR so like the other billions of poor souls in this world with no magic dirt put them on a plane and land them here in the USA.

[cll]

Puerto Rico Ping! Please Freepmail me if you want on or off the list.

[Moonman62]

Don’t believe it. PR statehood would mean an extra two Rat senators forever.

[Steely Tom]

He says current residents “are social and economic conservatives,” suggesting Republicans could pick up seats".

Yeah, riight.

[cdcdawg]

Thank goodness we have magic dirt here, and the Constitution. That solves all problems for all people.

[unread]

"Cal Thomas: Puerto Rico's sorry state."

Puerto Rico..??? Somebody better be looking into the problems in Illinois...!

[thesharkboy]

IQ matters. Puerto Rico’s average IQ is 84, even lower than that of Mexico. Cut them loose and we raise the average IQ of American citizens.

[cll]

Where the hell do you get that BS?

[trisham]

I don’t believe it. What is your souce?

[trisham]

I don’t believe it. What is your source?

[thesharkboy]

All together, 19 studies provide scores that might appropriately be compared with U.S. norms: from these samples I estimated an IQ of 84.6 for Puerto Rico (Section Ic).

[trisham]

Human Varieties
humanvarieties.org
Top Ten Human Varieties Posts. Posted by Dalliard. 4. In the more than three years of its existence, about 110 posts have been published on this blog.

You estimated the average IQ?

[thesharkboy]

I’m quoting directly from an original source in which the author averaged the results of many IQ studies over time. I didn’t perform the analysis myself.

[George from New England]

Time to call it ... Puerto Ricofornia

[warsaw44]

oh, bull crap. What’s your source for that?

[thesharkboy]

See post 12.

[SilvieWaldorfMD]

Thanks, CLL!

Saludos!

[JimRed]

Not a good set of choices for us...if they become a state they will add 2 RAT senators and some RAT congressmen; if the take independence they could lease the naval base at Rosey Roads to Russia, China or North Korea...

Keeping them “as is” is safest for now.

[JimRed]

He says current residents “are social and economic conservatives,” suggesting Republicans could pick up seats".

What percentage of those "social and economic conservatives" are currently on the dole? That would tell the tale.