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The 51st State

2012-11-07 · explainer · Hank · 3:59 · watch on YouTube

Topic: US politics & society · mode: News analysis · tags: timely hook, self promotion

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

The parts of the video and what is said in each (★ — how much it matters to the video).

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, United States, United States Congress
  • ★★ 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 · United States

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 · United States

    “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

  • ★★ 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
    • 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
    • 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, United States Congress
  • ★★★ Hank says granting statehood takes not 51% of the vote but two-thirds. — 00:02:33 · United States Congress
    • a number in question (slip of the tongue): "51%" — check against the recording
    • check: two thirds — slip of the tongue
  • ★★ 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 · United States

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

  • ★ Hank thanks everyone who voted on 6 November 2012 in the US and Puerto Rico and asks all to proceed toward a more perfect union, however many states it has. — 00:03:36 · United States

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

In the description and comments

  • ★★ Hank notes that Puerto Rico remains, in effect, a US colony and in its 500-year history has been an autonomous country for only four weeks, between Spain giving it up and the US taking possession. — video description · United States
  • ★★★ Hank adds that the ballot question was odd: a two-part question whose first part a majority answered in favour of a status change, while many skipped the second, so the statehood majority may have been outweighed by those wanting no change, independence or a different commonwealth status. (hedged) — video description
  • ★★ Hank says the share of Puerto Ricans favouring statehood keeps rising, and it is an issue the US will have to face some day. — video description · United States

Threads in this video

Where the stories that moved here went next

Mentioned

Central: 2012 Puerto Rican status referendum · colonialism · Puerto Rico · status quo bias · United States Congress · United States presidential election

Also: People: Alejandro García Padilla · Barack Obama · Mazie Hirono · Mitt Romney · Tammy Baldwin · Tammy Duckworth

Projects: DFTBA Records

Works: Constitution of the United States

Organizations: Democratic Party · Federal government of the United States · Republican Party · United Nations · United States House of Representatives · United States Senate

Concepts: drug liberalization · political polarization · same-sex marriage · Supermajority · universal health care

Places: France · United States

Policies: Medicaid · Medicare · Social Security

Only in the description or credits: Spanish Empire

Also centred on colonialism: SOMALI PIRATES! France Penetrates Chad! · Why is Haiti Poor? · Understanding Boko Haram · Why Are Poor Countries Poor?

Also centred on Puerto Rico: The Stadium of Representatives: The End of B20 Week :-(

Also centred on status quo bias: Your Yard Is EVIL

Later videos replying to this one

Part of an exchange of 3 videos, 2012-11-07 – 2012-11-09.