Puerto Rico has voted to become the 51st state in the union. The White House has asked Congress to take action to admit Puerto Rico to the union. Will the American people welcome a 51st state?Read More »Mainland Americans Warming Up to Puerto Rican Statehood
The Young Democrats of America (YDA) passed a resolution at their winter meeting in Salt Lake City this week, “urging President Barack Obama and the United States Congress to take action on the irrefutable and clear mandate sent by the people of Puerto Rico on November 6th, 2012 during which the current territorial political relationship of the island with the United States was rejected and an overwhelming majority voted in favor of Puerto Rico becoming the 51st state of the Union.”Read More »Young Democrats Support Puerto Rican Statehood
White House Director of Hispanic Media Luis Miranda issued a statement last night clarifying President Obama’s position on the recent Puerto Rico plebiscite vote in which 54% of voters selected to terminate Puerto Rico’s territorial status and 61% of the voters who chose a new political status for Puerto Rico selected statehood.Read More »White House: Puerto Rico Vote Was Clear
In his first formal remarks on the U.S. mainland following the historic November 6, 2012 plebiscite in which the continuation of Puerto Rico’s territorial status was rejected by 54% of the island’s voters, Puerto Rico’s second highest government official called upon the United States Congress to “tear down” the anachronistic wall of segregation and inequality that for nearly a century has deprived Puerto Ricans of the most basic rights of their American citizenship, and allow Puerto Rico to become a state.Read More »McClintock: Congress Must Take Action
Unequal treatment of Puerto Rico under federal law has frequently been justified on the grounds that Puerto Ricans do not pay federal income tax on… Read More »The Federal Income Taxes Puerto Ricans Pay
Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor has long been a source of pride for Puerto Ricans, and when President Obama nominated her to the Supreme Court in 2009, many celebrated that her nomination provided renewed interest in the discussion over Puerto Rico’s status. Although Justice Sotomayor has avoided locking herself into any position on the issue, an analysis of her scholarly writing suggests that her opinion on Puerto Rico’s status has evolved from an emotional call for independence to a more thoughtful and pragmatic position of support for statehood.Read More »Justice Sotomayor’s Position on Statehood
Ohio State Representative Daniel Ramos is the latest legislator to back Puerto Rico’s bid for statehood. Ramos, who was born and raised in Ohio but is of Puerto Rican descent, has introduced a House Concurrent Resolution asking the U.S. Congress to take action “that respects the will of U.S. Citizens in Puerto Rico, and takes steps toward admitting the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico to the Union as a state,” according to a report in HispanicOhio.comRead More »Ohio’s Ramos Asks Congress for Action
The vote for statehood on November 6th was only the first step in a new direction for Puerto Rico.Read More »Next Steps for Puerto Rico Statehood
The United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) is researching the fiscal effects of Puerto Rico becoming a state of the United States now that residents of the island territory have voted to join the Union.Read More »GAO Studying Fiscal Aspects of Puerto Rico Statehood
