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guest_
· 46 weeks ago
· FIRST
They cannot legally stop what? You can declare what you like but it doesn’t make it true. Congress has the power to grant statehood but no obligation to do. Other than a couple line prohibiting congress from unilaterally making states out of existing ones, there aren’t really any hard rules. Historically congress has had requirements when adding states, they have generally required things like some sort of evidence (like vote results in a recognized ballot) showing the majority of people of the territory want to be states, and usually the territory needs to adopt government and law compatible to the US constitution before it can become a state. There may be any number of additional stipulations and even if all stipulations are met congress can still decide not to grant statehood when they vote- and of course the president generally maintains broad veto powers over congress under the constitution so historically the motion is presented to the president for approval.
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guest_
· 46 weeks ago
So it isn’t so simple as to declare yourself a state. Minimum requirement would be the support of congress, and likely the standing president, but you’d also likely need popular public support to gain and keep support from the representative government. Usually you need to become a U.S. territory first, which has certain disadvantages in control and autonomy and would at least short term work contrary to the plan to gain control as you’d be seeding control to the US government who could ultimate never grant statehood. Puerto Rico has been a US territory for over 50 years and is not a state, at times not wanting statehood and at times wanting it but being refused it. Which is the other potential hurdle- statehood can take decades or more to be granted even if it eventually is. So you need to get and keep public and majority congress and executive support for likely decades in order to become a U.S. state. Ultimately though congress decides.
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