Thread by @WholePicture_

Here a Thread about #PertuRico #USA #BidenHarris #Democrats :
The admission of Puerto Rico as a full member state of the USA has been discussed for a long time.....
Source: nzz.ch/pro-global/usa…

...Thanks to the current balance of power, the Democrats would now have the opportunity to implement the project and thus expand their power in the Senate.

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The USA has several outer areas that belong to the state, but do not form any constituent states and also do not belong to any of the 50 constituent states.
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These outer areas include the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico, the Pacific islands of Guam, American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands, as well as some uninhabited islands.
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The Puerto Ricans voted in November to accept their country as a fully fledged member state of the United States. However, the referendum is not binding. Ultimately, the American Congress would have to vote on it.
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So far, Puerto Rico has been a strange hybrid: the 3.4 million inhabitants of the Antilles island are citizens of the USA, but are not allowed to vote in the presidential election.

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In the House of Representatives they are represented by a delegate who, however, also has no voting rights.
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Since the Democrats in the USA not only have the president, but also have a majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, the admission of Puerto Rico and the upgrading of the District of Columbia with Washington are on the agenda.

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The Democrats have a majority in both areas. Since each member state sends two senators, regardless of its size, the Senate would be enlarged to 104 members, and the Democrats could expand their wafer-thin majority.

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According to a poll by the New York Times and Siena College, 59 percent of Americans are for the creation of these two states and only 29 percent are against.

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In the Spanish-American War, the Spaniards lost the island to the Americans; Puerto Rico has belonged to the USA since 1898. Since 1967, Puerto Rico has voted on the island's status six times.
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However, the last two votes in 2012 and 2017 were boycotted by groups seeking complete independence or a loose association with the USA, so that the turnout was small and the vote was not really representative.

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The turnout was higher this time, but the majority of 52 percent was still relatively tight.

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Conflicts over weapons tests
In the course of history there had been tensions with the USA again and again, especially because of the small offshore island of Vieques, which as part of the Spanish Virgin Islands also belongs to Puerto Rico.

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The US has been testing weapons on Vieques since World War II. Left-over (uranium) ammunition and other chemical residues led to increased cancer rates and other health problems in the children.

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Decades of popular resistance, including occupying land, finally led the American government to begin withdrawing Navy troops in 2003.

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A shrinking population
Puerto Rico means "rich port" in German, but the island is dependent on US subsidies.

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The crises of recent years (Hurricane “Maria” in September 2017 with 3,000 deaths) and galloping poverty (billions in debt) have given the Puerto Rican supporters of full membership in the USA a boost.

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Because as an outer area, Puerto Rico cannot declare bankruptcy like cities and counties on the American mainland.
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Already, many Puerto Ricans migrate out because of the desolate employment situation in the United States what they see as American citizens can easily.

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Between 2005 and 2018 the population shrank. 1.7 million, or about a third of the population, migrated to America.

This means that Puerto Rico has one of the highest emigration rates in the world.
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The poverty of the country also gives the Republicans, in addition to the fear of the increase in the number of Democrats in the Senate, an argument against acceptance into the Union: They have no desire to incorporate a social case.

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2017, after the devastating hurricane that made Trump for discord on the island.

First aid remained for two weeks, then he made "corrupt politicians" and the location of the island ( "she is surrounded by the sea") is responsible for the failure, then he visited the island but, throwing, as a highlight, Toilet - Roll into the crowd.

Accordingly, great hopes are now directed towards Biden.
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The governor of Puerto Rico, Pedro Pierluisi, has only been in office since January 2nd. At the end of July 2019, the then governor Ricardo Rosselló resigned under public pressure after sexist and homophobic text messages about him became public.

However, that was only the last drop that broke the barrel full of corruption and other scandals.

Pierluisi followed him. However, the legality of the succession was questioned, so that he had to resign after a few days and leave the place to the interim governor Wanda Vázquez Garced.

Pierluisi is now back in office after winning the elections. He is close to Biden and had supported him in the election campaign. When asked about the status of Puerto Rico, Biden had always said that it was up to the Puerto Ricans to decide on their form of government.

In other words, after the referendum, the chances are good that something will get moving on the island.