[On the old FR, getting what might be an important defector would have been seen as great news and everyone would be happy.]
Between the periodic purges, and the ravages of Father Time, some were shut out, and others are simply in a better place. A good number of the remaining ones seem to hew towards a Charles Lindberghian view of the world while others are principally driven by older loyalties or allegiances to other sovereigns. So it’s Free Republic for some value of “Free” and some value of “Republic”.