There’s a curious thing about reading the foreign press on news from the states: not being directly impacted by that news, with the foreign press there can be less temptation to shape the story into a narrative that feeds the biases of the reporter. Because of this, you sometimes get some impartial and accurate reporting on certain topics, whereas domestically, these same stories are either spun or just ignored. This was certainly the case with Latin America’s Economíahoy.mx’s recent article by Jaime Palacios, “‘Texit’, the independence movement that can shake the foundations of the United States.” (Note: the article was originally in Spanish, and any quotes featured are translated via Google.)
The Economíahoy article is a general overview of the merits of Texas independence and focuses on the Texas Nationalist Movement, the largest and oldest on-going organization promoting independence in Texas. It begins discussing the history of Texas’ founding, Texas Independence Day, and even refers to the Battle of the Alamo as a “massacre,” at the hands of Santa Anna. Then it gets into specifics about Texas’ chances of reasserting her independence, using data that hardly gets a fair-hearing on this side of the Rio Bravo.
Palacios mentions the popular support that an independent Texas holds with Texans:
The idea that Texas can decide its future is not something exclusive to the TNM. According to internal surveys conducted by the organization, “48% of Texans are in favor of independence” and 16% “are still undecided.” For that reason, the TNM has been betting for years for a referendum to be the Texans themselves “who decide their own status.”
The article also describes other facts that flesh-out the popularity of Texit. Such facts mentioned are:
- Texit holds 35% popularity among Democrats (though the article could have mentioned its 54% GOP and 49% independent support).
- A 2013 petition for a Texit to the White House quickly gathered more than enough signatures to have the Obama White House respond to it.
- TNM has accumulated almost 380,000 pledges from Texans that they will vote for independence when the politicians let them have their say.
- In 2016, a plank for a vote on Texas independence nearly made it into the Texas GOP platform (Note: The Libertarian Party of Texas already has such a plank).
Jaime then went on to describe some of the qualities that Texas possesses that will help it do well as an independent nation:
- Texas has the 2nd highest GDP in the U.S.
- Texas, if independent, would be among the “10 richest nations in the world, ahead of Canada and Australia.”
- Texas is the largest crude-oil producer in the U.S., almost 3 billion barrels more than the nearest competitor (North Dakota), and that’s been on the rise since 2010.
The article finishes with the legal argument and models for Texit. It accurately reports that there isn’t anything in the U.S. Constitution nor federal law that forbids a Texit and that “‘the decision power falls on the people of Texas themselves.'” Additionally, the Texas Constitution’s Bill of Rights recognizes Texas’ right to leave the Union. And although the successful Brexit effort and the Scottish independence effort are an inspiration for Texas, the inevitable Texit (as borne out by the polls) will differ in areas, as Texas has “‘its own way.'”
Hat’s off to Economíahoy.mxfor doing the job that the U.S. press largely refuses to do: getting it right on Texit!
