[RushIsMyTeddyBear]

Check out this thread, too. :-)

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2502174/posts

[MNJohnnie]

Thanks. No one should take this lightly.

This is a transparent attempt by the Progressives in Congress to dilute the vote of American citizens and establish a perpetual Democrat majority in Congress.

If Porto Rico becomes a state, the Democrats can immediately seat 2 new Senators and 6 Congresspersons under what is known as the Tennessee rule.

Rather then being rushed through under the radar, this issue should be fully debated in front of the American people before it is enacted.

[MrEdd]

Reid and Pelosi are about to get another political black eye.

Puerto Ricans dont want to be a state.

[Young Werther]

Once again Congress has it wrong.

Puerto Rico the 58th State in Obombast Onion!

[exbrit]

Anyone asked the Puerto Ricans if they want to be a state?

[Vigilanteman]

Puerto Rico has always chosen the status quo when given a choice. Why shouldn't they? It gives them almost every advantage of U.S. Citizenship without forcing them to pay Federal income taxes.

If this crap passes, it begs the obvious question as to what would prevent Guam, the Virgin Islands or even some non-U.S. Territory like Jamaica or Haiti from applying for stealth statehood by this same method?

[alexander_busek]

The average income of Puerto Ricans is less than half that of our poorest state, and infrastructure and the environment are far below American standards. Puerto Rico has a population with a median national income of $17,741, nearly a third below that for the U.S.

Not one-third below... but rather one-third of.

Regards,

[wolfman23601]

So this is how Barry plans to take over the world...

[gogeo]

They are in a hurry, aren’t they? Or is it arrogance?

[cripplecreek]

It apparently will allow former PR residents to vote in the referendum even if they live in any of the other states.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2502174/posts?page=7#7

That’s like saying I can vote in Texas because I lived there for a few months back in te early 80s.

[browniexyz]

I called my Congressional Rep., a Dem who wouldn’t allow his intern to say what he will do on this bill!! I argued that this Congress keeps foisting laws on reluctant people, and here is yet another example....

[opentalk]

bump

[wny]

"It would inevitably give Democrats two additional U.S. Senators and 6 to 8 additional Members of the House"

this is the one and only reason.

[TexasCajun]

I just got off the phone with my US Congressman's office and they told me the bill was not a bill to make P.R. a state, but a bill to allow P.R. to vote on US Statehood.

So as usual, I'm confused.

[SoFloFreeper]

BO fears November. Democrat party is dirty.

[Rodamala]

Perhaps, come 2012, every solid Red State needs to split in at least 2 and the "new" states be voted into the Union as "new states"... and we can seat even more Anti-Progressives?

Hahahahahahha!

[Rightly Biased]

that’ll screw up the flag

[rmlew]

The 2 Senators wouldn’t be theft. The 4 House seats would be.
If more than 20% of the people want to be independent and less than an overwhelming majority of any territory want to join, they should not.
PR is worse since it has significantly different culture. What percentage speak and read English fluently? How many state supporters in PR are doing so for welfare?

[calex59]

I don’t think the law allows them to make Puerto Rico a state without a Vote of the people. That would be like taking over a country and forcing them to become a state. Talk about your “nation building” BS. I am sure this is illegal and it needs to be stopped now. The only hope that I can see now is if Puerto Rico declares their independence in the manner that the Philippines did.

[Clemenza]

The Third Worldization of America continues. PR probably would've have been turned loose earlier, had it not been for the Cold War. Uncle Sugar then decided to make PR a showcase of "capitalism" by shoveling billions of dollars to our Third World colony via "Operation Bootstrap." What we now have in PR is a Potemkin village that would collapse if Uncle Sugar ever closed its military bases, ended its subsidies (including "tax credits), and pulled out entirely.

I don't see how folks who complain about the US becoming a Third World country would, at the same time, support statehood for PR. It would be the poorest state in the union, with a majority of its population continuing to use the WIC card to buy groceries as is the case now.

We have some very nice Freepers on here from PR who are always nice enough to post interesting articles on the island. Nevertheless, for those of use concerned about the continued demographic Third Worldization of America, along with the increase of so called "Americans" on the dole, PR statehood would be as ridiculous as making Nigeria a state. PR has a radically different racial/cultural/political identity (to say nothing of a different legal system), as well as a culture of corruption somewhere between Zimbabwe and El Salvador, than mainstream America.

If you are truly of the Right, there is NO reason for you to support statehood for PR. To those Freepers from PR, I will say that if you want the benefits of statehood, a flight to Orlando is very cheap from San Juan.