How One Texas Neighborhood Seceded From The Democrat-Run City Hall Ruining Their Lives
The Lost Creek neighborhood in Austin, Texas, is charting a way for communities to band together and break up with abusive city governments.
The "Greater Idaho" movement continues to gain steam, promising to liberate conservative counties east of the Deschutes River from the ruinous policies and Democratic control all but ensured by residents in the more populous leftist areas nearer the coast, such as Mayor Ted Wheeler's crime-ravaged Portland.
On Tuesday, Crook County voters were presented with ballot measure 7-86, which asked: "Should Crook County represent that its citizens support efforts to move the Idaho state border to include Crook County?"
The majority signaled their support for moving the state border westward and joining their conservative compatriots in the Gem State.
Those opposed to the measure unsuccessfully argued against 7-86 in the State Voters' Pamphlet that joining Idaho was problematic because:
A loss of voters might also mean Oregon could lose representatives in Congress.
Citizens for Greater Idaho president Mike McCarter, a firearms instructor from the town of LaPine, alternatively argued, "There is a way to get better governance for central and eastern Oregon. The current location of the Oregon/Idaho border was decided 165 years ago and is now outdated because it doesn't match the location of the dividing line between the counties that prefer Idaho's style of governance and counties that prefer Oregon's style of governance."
McCarter further noted the residents of Crook County would receive better representation in Idaho, where the state legislature "is controlled by representatives from rural districts, who govern according to the concerns and priorities of rural counties."
McCarter, whose organization has elsewhere suggested that "only 25% of Oregonians who are registered to vote are registered Republican," stressed that the alternative would be to continue living under the thumb of Oregon politicians who "don't understand how we make a living. Their decisions damage industries like timber, mining, trucking, ranching and farming."
'When you go to seek redress and your government doesn't listen to you, where do you turn?'
Idaho state Rep. Barbara Ehardt (R) recently told CNN, "Constitutionally, people should have the opportunity to seek redress from their government."
"When you go to seek redress and your government doesn't listen to you, where do you turn?" she continued. "These people were seeking redress from the next best thing, which would be us."
Greater Idaho executive director Matt McCaw similarly suggested in the voters pamphlet, "The right to choose our own government is a foundational principle of the United States. It's why we hold votes for government office, redistrict every ten years, and have an initiative system that allows voters to refer issues directly to the ballot. The goal of all of these systems is to get government that people actually want and that matches their values."
"East-side Oregonians have little voice in their own state government, even less political power, and get a steady barrage of policies forced on us that we don't want and don't reflect our community or values," added McCaw.
Evidently, 53.44% of Crook County voters cared more about regaining a political say over their fates than abortion rights, automatic voter registration, sales tax, and slot machines, saying "yes" to ballot measure 7-86. The votes will not be certified until June.
"The voters of eastern Oregon have spoken loudly and clearly about their desire to see border talks move forward," McCaw said in a statement. "We call on the governor, speaker of the House, and Senate president to sit down with us and discuss next steps towards changing governance for eastern Oregonians, as well as for the legislature to begin holding hearings on what a potential border change will look like."
"What they're telling us through these votes is that they want their leaders to move the border. In our system, the people are the ones in charge, and it's time for the leaders representing them to follow through," said McCarter.
Greater Idaho suggested that the "yes" vote would likely have been more substantial were it not for the opposition campaign bankrolled by Portland groups.
Idaho Gov. Brad Little indicated in 2020 — as the first of the eastern Oregon counties began to vote in favor of leaving Oregon to its troubles — that he liked the idea of a "Greater Idaho."
Little told "Fox & Friends" that he understood "what takes place in the Portland area has a big impact on those rural parts of Oregon, and I understand they're looking at Idaho fondly because of our regulatory atmosphere, our values. That doesn't surprise me one bit."
Little noted, however, there would be various legal "hurdles" prospective western Idahoans would have to clear first. The U.S. Congress and both the Oregon and Idaho state legislatures would have to approve the border shift.
KOIN-TV noted that the Idaho legislature passed a measure last year to begin conversations with Oregon lawmakers about the initiative.
Ahead of the talks, Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) quipped, "I would entertain a trade for Boise and Sun Valley."
Extra to Crook County, the following counties have reportedly passed measures in favor of joining Idaho: Sherman; Morrow; Union; Wallowa; Jefferson; Wheeler; Grant; Baker; Malheur; Harney; Lake; and Klamath.
While there has long been an interest in moving the border, Democrat-championed COVID restrictions reportedly helped provide the movement with the traction it needed to get where it is today.
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Approximately 20% of U.S. citizens – which would represent roughly 66 million people — support the idea of a national divorce, according to a new poll.
A "Two Americas" survey by Ipsos found that 1 in 5 Americans support breaking up the United States into two countries based on political beliefs.
Republicans were more in favor of a national divorce, with 25% of GOP voters wanting to separate, according to the poll of 1,018 American adults. Meanwhile, 20% of independents and 16% of Democrats embrace the national divorce idea.
Men, individuals making $50,000 or less per year, and those living in the South and West were more likely to support a national divorce.
Only 16% of Americans support their state seceding from the U.S. to form or join a new country. There were 47% of poll takers who said they would move out of their state if there was an effort to secede.
There were 64% of Americans who said there is more that divides us than unites us. There were 61% who blamed "political and social elites" for the nation's polarization, and only 15% who faulted "how ordinary Americans think and behave."
The survey found that 57% of respondents were not confident at all that Americans would reconcile our difference in the next five years.
The poll revealed that 54% of Americans were not optimistic about the state of our country's democracy.
Cliff Young, president of Ipsos U.S. Public Affairs, told Axios, "Americans’ deep political fault lines are clear and engrained in our psyche and politics. Talk of national divorce or secession leaves us with a divided nation with little hope of reconciliation."
Last month, Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia caused a stir when she declared that the United States needed a national divorce.
"We need a national divorce. We need to separate by red states and blue states and shrink the federal government. Everyone I talk to says this. From the sick and disgusting woke culture issues shoved down our throats to the Democrat’s traitorous America Last policies, we are done," Greene proclaimed.
A poll taken in June 2022 found that 44% of Americans believe the "U.S. seems headed toward a civil war in the near future," including 53% of Republicans and 39% of Democrats.
Another survey from July 2021 revealed that two-thirds of Republicans in the South and nearly half of Democrats on the West Coast want to secede from the union and form new nations composed of regional states.
A February 2021 poll said that nearly a third of Americans want to break up the United States and create smaller, like-minded countries.
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Voters from one of California's most populous counties will have the opportunity this November to vote on whether their county should consider seceding from California.
The San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors voted 4-0 on Wednesday to include the secession measure on the November ballot, the Associated Press reported.
Importantly, the measure does not directly ask voters whether San Bernardino County should secede from California, but whether county officials should consider secession as a means for the county to obtain what officials believe are the state and federal resources it deserves.
The ballot measure reads:
Do the citizens of San Bernardino County want the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors to study all options to obtain its fair share of state and federal resources, up to and including secession?
San Bernardino County is the largest county by land size in the contiguous United States at more than 20,000 square miles, making it larger than Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, and Rhode Island — combined.
Despite its large size and population of nearly 2.2 million people — making it California's fifth-most populous county — San Bernardino County spokesman David Wert disclosed that a recent study showed that, in terms of per-capita revenue received from the state and federal governments, San Bernardino County ranks 36th out of 56.
That means counties with fewer than 200,000 people receive more state and federal dollars than San Bernardino County.
The vote, then, is really about increasing pressure on officials to ensure that San Bernardino receives its "fair share" of the pie.
"It's a question we're going to put to our residents. Do they want to include all options to go after, fight for their fair share of taxpayer dollars?" Supervisor Curt Hagman said.
"I do think we have to look at anything we can do to enhance services for our residents," Supervisor Joe Baca Jr. agreed. "I’m not in favor of seceding. I’m proud to be from California. I love California."
At the board meeting, Supervisor Dawn Rowe suggested San Bernardino County could join Arizona or Nevada, noting the expenses associated with maintaining an entire state.
More than a quarter of Americans believe they'll need to take up arms against the U.S. government, according to a new poll.
A poll from the University of Chicago’s Institute of Politics found that 28% of U.S. voters – including 37% who own guns – believe "it may be necessary at some point soon for citizens to take up arms against the government."
Along party lines, 45% of voters identified as "strong Republicans" said it may be necessary to take up arms against the government. Meanwhile, 21% of strong Democrats and 35% of independent voters believe they may need to take up arms against the government.
The survey of 1,000 U.S. voters discovered that a majority of Americans feel as though the government is "corrupt and rigged against everyday people like me" – including 73% of voters who describe themselves as a “strong Republican" and 68% of rural voters.
There were 69% of strong Republicans who said "more and more feel like a stranger in my own country," while 38% of Democrats agreed.
Regarding election integrity, only 33% of Republicans "generally trust elections to be conducted fairly and counted accurately," compared to 51% of independents and 78% of Democrats.
There is one thing Republicans and Democrats agree on: both political party members loathe each other.
According to the poll, 73% of Republicans say that "Democrats are generally bullies who want to impose their political beliefs on those who disagree." At nearly the same percentage (74%), Democrats view Republicans as bullies who want to impose their political beliefs on others.
There were 49% of poll participants who "avoided political discussions with others because I don’t know where they stand." Politics has caused a quarter of Americans to lose friends and avoid friends or relatives for their political beliefs, according to the poll. There were 38% who "unfriended or stopped following someone on social media because of their political views." The survey found that 26% of people stopped doing business with a company or brand because of their politics.
"While we've documented for years the partisan polarization in the country, these poll results are perhaps the starkest evidence of the deep divisions in partisan attitudes rippling through the country," said Republican pollster Neil Newhouse – who helped conduct the poll.
Last month, a poll revealed that 44% of Americans believe the "U.S. seems headed toward a civil war in the near future," including 53% of Republicans and 39% of Democrats.
Last July, a survey regarding possible secession found that two-thirds of Republicans in the South and nearly half of Democrats on the West Coast want to secede from the union and form countries composed of regional states.
An alarming poll was released this week that highlights the concerning and growing divide in the United States. Two-thirds of Republicans in the South and nearly half of Democrats on the West Coast want to secede from the union, according to a new poll.
Bright Line Watch, a self-described "initiative to monitor democratic practices in the U.S. and call attention to threats to American democracy," and YouGov conducted a survey of 2,650 American adults between June 26 and July 2, 2021. For the poll, participants were presented with a hypothetical separation of the United States into five regional unions. Respondents were asked, "Would you support or oppose [your state] seceding from the United States to join a new union with [list of states in new union]?"
The region and political affiliation most welcoming seceding from the United States were Republicans from the South, where 66% said they would want to break off into a new country. Half of the independent voters were also ready to form a new country, which would include 13 Southern states: Texas, Florida, Virginia, Tennesee, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Kentucky.
The poll found that 47% of Democrats in the Pacific region, which includes California, Washington, Oregon, Hawaii, and Alaska, were ready to break away from the union.
The survey said 43% of independents were ready to secede in the Heartland region: Michigan, Ohio, West Virginia, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota, Kansas, and Nebraska.
In the Mountain region, which includes Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, Nevada, Arizona, and New Mexico, there were 43% of Republicans and 35% of independents who wanted to secede from the United States.
In the Northeast region, 39% of Democrats, 33% of independents, and 26% of Republicans were ready to break away from the union. The region includes Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, and the District of Columbia.
Despite President Joe Biden vowing that he would bring unity to the country, Americans are considering division more than when he was first elected. Bright Line Watch asked the same question to Americans between Jan. 28 and Feb. 8, 2021. In the six months since the last survey, support for secession "rose in every region and among nearly every partisan group." In the previous poll, there were 50% of Republicans in the South who wanted to secede compared to 66% now.
"Support among Republicans in the Mountain region increased as well, by 7 points, from 36% to 43%," Bright Line Watch wrote. "Among Democrats in the West, a near-majority of 47% (up 6 points) supports a schism, as do 39% (up 5 points) in Northeast. Support jumped 9 points among independents in the Heartland as well, reaching 43%."
"The broad and increasing willingness of respondents to embrace these alternatives is a cause for concern," the outlet wrote.
Most disturbing datapoint I've seen in awhile: two-thirds of Southern Republicans now say the South should break aw… https://t.co/8nlNnR8SEy
— Christopher Ingraham (@_cingraham) 1626281414.0