Thread: Breaking News House Passes Puerto Rico Statehood Measure

I guess this answers some of my questions about PR becoming a state. Bad thing:



Puerto Rico Being Forced Down the Path to Statehood?
Sometimes we receive items from local tea parties around the country that are so well drafted, and so important, that we just forward them as is. Thanks to Patti Weaver of the Pittsburgh Tea Party for the following:


Would you please call the U.S. Representatives today and ask them to vote no on H.R. 2499? This is a trojan horse, middle of the night kind of bill that you may not have heard about yet. The Left is trying to label anyone who votes against this bill as a racist, so all representatives must be called!


TIME TO MELT THE PHONES!

Congress is at it again!

Now they are trying to sneak in a vote that would put Puerto Rico on the path to statehood. The only trouble is, they haven't exactly told US about it (sound familiar??).

Please take a moment and read the information below, then pick up the phone and CALL YOUR CONGRESSIONAL REPRESENTATIVE! ... Then call five friends and ask them to do the same!

Click on congressmerge.com/onlinedb/index.htm to get your Representative's best phone numbers. Start with the DC offices, then move on the the LOCAL numbers!

Demand your Representative vote NO on HR 2499

Here's what Andrew Breitbart's BigGovernment.com had to say:
There is a bill to make Puerto Rico a state. Again, they are trying to pull one over on us and on Puerto Ricans, who have consistently said they do not want to become a state. Read below for more information (from Eagle Forum). This was also discussed by Rep Tom Price on a conference call yesterday.

Please consider this:

* The U.S. would transform, overnight, into a bilingual nation. At least half of Puerto Ricans do not speak English, the language of our U.S. Constitution and founding documents. The Washington Times article, "Puerto Rican statehood," analyzes all the implications of adding a foreign language-speaking state to the Union.

* It would bring immediate demands for massive federal spending. The average income of Puerto Ricans is less than half that of our poorest state, and infrastructure and the environment are far below American standards. Puerto Rico has a population with a median national income of $17,741, nearly a third of that for the U.S.

* Puerto Rico is already a democracy. Despite the bill's deceptive title, Puerto Rico already has an elected government and exists as a self-governed commonwealth of the U.S.

* Statehood would give Puerto Rico more congressional representation than 25 of our 50 states! It would inevitably give Democrats two additional U.S. Senators and 6 to 8 additional Members of the House.


H.R. 2499 is stealth legislation designed to lead to the admission of Spanish-speaking Puerto Rico as the 51st state, thereby making us a de facto bilingual nation, like Canada. The U.S. Congress should not be forcing Puerto Ricans to vote on statehood, especially since the Puerto Rican people have rejected statehood three times since 1991!

No Member of Congress who describes himself as a limited government, fiscal conservative should be casting a YEA vote for H.R. 2499,as Puerto Rican statehood would cause an immediate increase in federal expenditures, particularly for taxpayer-funded welfare state services.

Read the whole thing:
http://biggovernment.com/taylorking/201 ... ake-it-so/

The Puerto Rican government is even playing hardball with it own people! Read this by Ann Shibler :

The United States House of Representatives is set to vote on H.R. 2499, the Puerto Rico Democracy Act, as early as this week. This bill would mandate a non-binding expression by the voters of Puerto Rico as to their wishes with regard to retaining their commonwealth status or becoming a state or becoming an independent nation, but in conjunction with other legislation already introduced inside Puerto Rico, the commonwealth status of the island could be eliminated as early as this year.

Three times in the past 43 years Puerto Ricans have voted against becoming the 51st state in the Union, the last time being 11 years ago. But this time the bill is rigged to eliminate the commonwealth option and grant either full statehood, or total independence. Sen. Jose Hernandez-Mayoral of the island's minority Popular Democratic Party said, "Behind this innocuous bill lies a fully thought out assault on Congress to designate the island the 51st state." "With the commonwealth option out of the ballot, statehood is finally, albeit crookedly, assured a victory."

The whole article is here: http://www.jbs.org/us-constitution-blog ... uerto-rico

I am thinking maybe this was a strategy by the Republicans, make it look like they are supporting something ( not the party of NO)....chances of this going to the Senate this year are pretty slim as busy as they are......what do you think?

But this time the bill is rigged to eliminate the commonwealth option and grant either full statehood, or total independence.

oh, oh. Didn't see this part.

Sen. Jose Hernandez-Mayoral of the island's minority Popular Democratic Party said, "Behind this innocuous bill lies a fully thought out assault on Congress to designate the island the 51st state." "With the commonwealth option out of the ballot, statehood is finally, albeit crookedly, assured a victory."

How could that be "non-binding"?

Added to homepage
http://www.alipac.us/article5203.html

Puerto Ricans have U.S. citizenship.
If they vote for total independence do they loose that citizenship?
Can We then deport all Puerto Ricans?
Or, are we stuck with the ones who are here.?

The Dims just want a voting block so that they can remain in power. That's all they ever care about, isn't it?

So I assume the amendments that would give Puerto Rico the "none of the above" option were voted down? I must admit it sorta freaked me out that Luis Guttierez and I agree on something, but he was putting forth some excellent points and was very passionate about the 'none of the above' option - which has been the option of choice of Puerto Ricans in the past.

This whole thing is blowing my mind. Can we fathom how BIG this is? We're not planting a tree here - We're talking about ADDING A STATE TO THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!

AND THE MEDIA IS NOT TALKING ABOUT IT!!!!

Updated April 29, 2010

House Approves Puerto Rico Statehood Measure

FOXNews.com

The House voted Thursday to allow Puerto Ricans to decide their own political future and relationship with the United States.

The House voted Thursday to allow Puerto Ricans to change the island’s commonwealth status, in what critics are saying is a backdoor attempt to force Puerto Ricans into choosing U.S. statehood -- something Puerto Rican voters already have rejected three times.

The bill, which passed 223-169 and now must be taken up by the Senate, would introduce a two-step ballot measure for Puerto Rico to decide if its residents want to change their current relationship with the United States. If they vote to change their status, they can then choose to become a state, pursue independence, or seek some other "political association between sovereign nations."

Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, said that while Puerto Rico doesn't need congressional authorization to hold such a nonbinding vote, the bill could be a game-changer -- part of a plan, he said, to give the island's progressive activists "legitimacy" in a push toward statehood. Chaffetz suggested it was part of an effort to bring more Democrats into Congress.

"That's what some of us who understand this bill are so just frightened about," Chaffetz told radio and Fox News host Glenn Beck. "The majority of people in Puerto Rico don't even necessarily want this."

Puerto Rico became a U.S. territory at the end of the Spanish-American War. Those born on the island were granted U.S. citizenship in 1917 and Puerto Rico gained commonwealth status in 1952.

Today, Puerto Ricans serve in the military but can't vote in presidential elections. They do not pay federal income tax on income earned on the island.

Proponents of the new measure say it gives citizens of the island the right to self-determination.‬‪ ‬‪Thursday's action was nonbinding, and if Puerto Ricans eventually select statehood, Congress would still have to vote to admit the island to the union as the 51st state.‬‪ ‬‪

The issue divided Democrats and Republicans alike as liberal Democrats with ties to Puerto Rico teamed with conservative Republicans to oppose the measure.

Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., whose parents were born in Puerto Rico and who represents part of Chicago, slammed the bill on the House floor Thursday morning, calling it a device to "impose" statehood on residents who have repeatedly rejected the idea.

"Really it's designed to get one thing and one thing only, and that is to have the people of Puerto Rico accept statehood for themselves," he said. "Why don't we accept their wishes? … It's spelled the same in English as in Spanish: N-O. No. No."

The divides were particularly stark among members of the House Republican leadership team. House Minority Leader John Boehner,R-Ohio, voted against the legislation. Meantime, House Minority Whip Eric Cantor, R-Va., and Republican Conference Chairman Mike Pence, R-Ind., voted in favor.

Puerto Rico Gov. Luis Fortuno (R) cobbled together more than 50 Republican sponsors in favor of the package.

But there was drama as the majority Democrats narrowly avoided an upset on the House floor.

Republicans attempted to add provisions to the legislation that would have made English the official language of a potential Puerto Rican state.

Republicans also tried to modify the bill by banning any infringement of the Second Amendment in Puerto Rico.

The Democratic majority defeated the GOP effort, 198-194.

Fox News' John Brandt and Chad Pergram and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Breaking news and access to video and infographics Exclusive FOXNews blogs and community features Channel info and more!

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/04 ... d-measure/

A 51st state? Congress takes up Puerto Rico statehood

A bill in the House of Representatives would give Puerto Rico's 4 million residents a vote on whether they want to transition to statehood or independence.

By Jim Abrams, Associated Press / April 29, 2010

Washington
The House on Thursday took up legislation that could set in motion changes in Puerto Rico's 112-year relationship with the United States, including a transition to statehood or independence.

The House bill would give the 4 million residents of the island commonwealth a two-step path to expressing how they envision their political future.

Initially, eligible voters, including those born in Puerto Rico but residing in the United States, would vote on whether they wish to keep their current political status or opt for a different direction.

If a majority are in favor of changing the current situation, the Puerto Rican government would be authorized to conduct a second vote and people would choose among three options: statehood, independence and sovereignty in association with the United States. Congress would have to vote on whether Puerto Rico becomes a state.

Pedro Pierluisi, Puerto Rico's non-voting delegate to the House, said that while the island has had votes on similar issues in the past, Congress has never authorized a process where Puerto Ricans state whether they should remain a U.S. territory or seek a nonterritorial status.

"The American way is to allow people to vote, to express themselves and to tell their elected officials how they feel about their political arrangements," said Puerto Rico Gov. Luis Fortuno at a news conference with Pierluisi. "For 112 years, we haven't had the chance ... to fully participate in one way or another in the decisions that affect our daily lives."

Puerto Rico became a U.S. territory at the end of the Spanish-American War. Those born on the island were granted U.S. citizenship in 1917 and Puerto Rico gained commonwealth status in 1952.

Today, Puerto Ricans serve in the military but can't vote in presidential elections. They do not pay income tax on income earned on the island.

In the last referendum, "none of the above" garnered 50 percent of the vote, topping the other options including statehood at 46.5 percent and independence at 2.5 percent.

Opposition to the House bill included Republican concerns that it would set Puerto Rico, where Spanish, as well as English, is the official language, on the road to statehood. Republicans said Puerto Rico would get some six seats in the House, possibly at the expense of other states, and that statehood would impose further burdens on the federal treasury.
___

Associated Press writer Ann Sanner contributed to this report.
___

The bill is H.R. 2499

On the Net:

Congress: http://thomas.loc.gov

http://www.csmonitor.com/From-the-news- ... -statehood

Must be about off shore drilling...