I don’t see a reason for violence. Texas is probably the best candidate. You’d need a governor and legislature that wanted secession. All they would have to do is declare themselves an independent country and withdraw the credentials of their congress critters unless they wanted one as an ambassador.
You can collect social security if you move to a foreign country. Texas wouldn’t be any different. The feds would have to negotiate with Texas as an equal and not an inferior. If enough contiguous states joined with Texas, they might render DC irrelevant.
Texas contributes far more to the federal budget than it gets returned. With all of the refinery capacity, they’d do fine. Valenzuela might even cut them a break on heavy crude.
I think most of the countries in the world might not be unhappy about a breakup. Of course if enough states reformed to create a nation governed under the Constituion without the commerce clause a much more powerful country could be formed.
The real losers would be the few blue states left out in the cold. They could be readmitted to the new union, but they wouldn’t have the same power. One of the requirements for joining should be a fiscally responsible government operating under a budget with absolutely no deficits allowed.
Well, no. TX (2005 stats but unlikely to have changed dramatically) receives $.94 for every dollar it sends to the feds. Which is just about exactly in the middle of the pack.
http://taxfoundation.org/article/federal-taxing-and-spending-benefit-some-states-leave-others-paying-bill-1
NM gets the most return for its tax dollars at $2.03, and NJ gets the least return at $.61.
“Texas contributes far more to the federal budget than it gets returned. With all of the refinery capacity, they’d do fine.”
Which is why the Washington government would fight its first total war since 1945 to keep the chattel asset called “Texas”.