Part of the reason I spent so much time a while back discussing how West Virginia was split from Virginia during the Civil war was the precedent it set for a possible breakup of California (and possibly Texas). So today we have elected officials making an official proposal.
The drums of war are beating louldly – things to notice about this idea
- States cannot split into two without approval of the entire state AND approval by Congress
“States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union; but no new State shall be formed or erected within the Jurisdiction of any other State; nor any State be formed by the Junction of two or more States, or Parts of States, without the Consent of the Legislatures of the States concerned as well as of the Congress.” - They specifically avoided including Los Angeles county. It’s clearly an anti-Hispanic proposal. The 9th District Court of appeals would never let this happen.
- Southern California will have problems with water supplies if there is any hostility to the idea from the rest of the state and/or the Federal government
- All citizens of California are responsible for the existing sovereign debt of the State of California. In the case of West Virginia, the new state had to assume a proportional share of the existing debt of the State of Virginia.
It’s getting to be desperation time.