Skip to content

The 51st State

2012-11-08 · Hank · watch on YouTube · US politics & society · news analysis

Hank argues that the most historic result of the 2012 election may be Puerto Rico's apparent vote for statehood, explains its colony-like status and the congressional hurdles, and suggests the biggest barrier is that Americans dislike changing the number of states.

What is said

00:00:00 — Greeting; the election's firsts; the biggest history may have been decided outside America

  • ★★ Hank calls the election one for the history books: the first female amputee in Congress, first female Asian American senator, first openly gay senator, first second term for a black president, and first legalizations of recreational marijuana and gay marriage. — 00:00:00 · United States presidential election, Barack Obama
  • ★★ Hank suggests the biggest piece of American history yesterday went unreported on the news, may not have been decided in America, but was decided by Americans. (hedged) — 00:00:15

00:00:28 — Puerto Rico's status: US citizens without a vote or representation, 'a colony, basically'; the UN view; quality of life and unemployment

  • ★★ Puerto Ricans living in Puerto Rico are American citizens: they use American money and passports, can serve in the US military and must obey American laws. — 00:00:31 · United States
  • ★★★ Hank says Puerto Rico is not part of America but a territory, 'a colony, basically': self-governing, yet the US sets its foreign policy, trade and wars; it pays many US taxes but has no vote or representation. — 00:00:41 > «it is a territory, a colony, basically.»
  • ★★ The UN, opposed to colonization, says this is not really okay (hence a French island is the Eurozone's southernmost point), but Puerto Ricans had always said the status quo was fine, so the UN accepted it. (hedged) — 00:01:00 · France
  • ★★ Hank says Puerto Ricans have it pretty well: universal health care, a longer life expectancy than Americans, and they pay into and receive Social Security. — 00:01:21
  • ★★ But Puerto Rico has 13% unemployment and per capita income two-thirds that of the poorest US state. — 00:01:29
    • number check: two thirds — doubtful

00:01:35 — Everyone agrees Puerto Rico may decide; costs, the balance of Congress, the supposed two-thirds requirement, division inside Puerto Rico

  • ★★ The UN, President Obama, Governor Romney and both the Democratic and Republican platforms all agree Puerto Rico should decide for itself whether to become a state. — 00:01:35 · Barack Obama, Republican Party
  • ★★★ Hank says Puerto Rico has now apparently decided for statehood, raising issues beyond fitting an extra star on the flag. (hedged) — 00:01:46
  • ★★ Hank expects the opposition to cite $20 billion of extra Medicare and Medicaid costs, but says the bigger issue is the balance of Congress. (hedged) — 00:01:56 · United States Congress
  • ★★★ As a state Puerto Rico would get two senators, making 102, and five or six representatives in the House. — 00:02:07
  • ★★ Those representatives would come out of other states' districts rather than be added, cutting their representation, which Hank thinks many states would be upset about. (hedged) — 00:02:13
    • number check: five — doubtful
  • ★★ Probably all of those members of Congress would be Democrats, so a Republican House would not be excited to give statehood a supermajority. (hedged) — 00:02:26 · Republican Party
  • ★★★ Hank says granting statehood takes not 51% of the vote but two-thirds. — 00:02:33 · United States Congress
    • number check: 51% — speaker_error
    • number check: two thirds — speaker_error
  • ★★ In a country that can barely get anything done with a simple majority, Hank says, a supermajority just seems crazy. — 00:02:39
  • ★★ Statehood remains extremely divisive inside Puerto Rico, which just elected a governor, 'basically their president', who is not in favor of statehood. — 00:02:46

00:02:54 — The bigger barrier: Americans dislike change and feel the 50 states are fixed

  • ★★★ The bigger barrier may be that Americans dislike change: the 50 states feel numerologically fixed though the number has often changed, and politics follows what feels true. (hedged) — 00:02:54 · United States
  • ★★ Hank says messing with the fundamental idea of American-ness is generally not a great political decision, even if it is the right decision. — 00:03:22

00:03:32 — Thanks to voters in the US and Puerto Rico; a more perfect union; sign-off

  • ★ Hank thanks everyone who voted in the US and Puerto Rico and asks all to proceed toward a more perfect union, however many states it has. — 00:03:36

00:03:46 — Quick note: a weird new item goes on pre-order at DFTBA.com tomorrow

  • ★★ Hank announces that tomorrow morning DFTBA.com starts a pre-order of an interesting new item he won't reveal because it's weird. — 00:03:46 · DFTBA Records

Threads in this video

BR2_b8e084c678