I have to say that I like this move:
Thirteen fed-up counties in liberal Oregon have voted in support of measures to start negotiations to secede from the state and join conservative Idaho.
The proposal seeks to move the Oregon border 200 miles to the west, meaning that 14 counties and several partial counties would fall under Idaho state lines.
Here’s what the redrawn boundaries would look like:
I have no idea how all this would work, but it sure beats back the tired old “If you don’t like it here, then leave” trope, to be replaced with “Sure we’ll leave, but we’re going to take all that farmland and our tax dollars with us”.
Needless to say, the Washgov (not to mention the feddle gov) is going to fight against this tooth and nail.
Get to it, guys, and git ‘er done.
Is there any particular advantage to joining Idaho rather than just seceding from Oregon and establishing a new State? Presumably the Feds would rather not admit another conservative State to the union, so there’s probably less paperwork involved in just switching allegiances.
A new state would mean 2 more Senators, but since representatives are based on population, no change to the house numbers, so just joining Idaho is an easier sell than a whole new state. Plus a new state would need to be ratified by congress. Just changeing the border between 2 adjacent states would probably only require agreement by the states involved.
Maybe they could recognize Eastern Oregon as a new state at the same time they admit Puerto Rico as a new state. Back before 1860 states were usually admitted in pairs to offset the slave and non slave admissions to statehood.
Why would we want Puerto Rico as a state, when most of its inhabitants have voted against it?
Although the natives oppose statehood, I hear a lot of imbeciles around here demand PR be made a state. We should cut them loose unless they serve some use to the US. Baxter pharmaceutical has a large plant there that makes IV fluid. That should be moved ot the mainland yesterday so that Hurricanes and other storms don’t interrupt supplies and production
Just imagine what Greater Idaho will look like when the eastern counties of WA, and the rural counties of NV, join. They might even agree to take in a few northern counties of CA (State of Jefferson advocates).
There have been folks in eastern WA wanting to do that since I was a kid in the 70s.
But doesn’t Spokane NOT want to and has the population to put the kibosh on that if it ever made it to a vote?
I like it. But I don’t think Oregon & Congress will go for it. Oregon has too much to lose and Congress has too many Damnocrats to approve.
I wish it were easier. Then the other 101 counties in Illinois could toss out Cook County, and let it flounder. I’d buy popcorn futures and plenty of popcorn for that!
“Sure we’ll leave, but we’re going to take all that farmland and our tax dollars with us”.
Which is why it’ll never happen.
Splitting off Eastern Oregon and Washington into a single new state would work better, but the Democrats would fight tooth and nail against new Republican senators and electors.
Same reason the State of Jefferson goes nowhere.