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Subscribe to RSSAn online petition that calls for the State of Texas to withdraw from the U.S. and create its own government on Monday reached the required signature threshold to receive an official response from The White House.
The petition on WhiteHouse.gov asks the Obama administration to "peacefully grant the State of Texas to withdraw from the United States of America and create its own new government." The petition had surpassed 34,000 signatures as of Monday evening. It was created by a person self-identified only as "Micah H." from Arlington, Texas.
The petition cites the nation's economic woes as an issue and says that the condition of Texas' budget and economy make it "practically feasible for Texas to withdraw from the union."
Online petitions on WhiteHouse.gov that get sufficient support are reviewed by White House staff and "sent to the appropriate policy experts." To be searchable on WhiteHouse.gov in the first place, petitions currently need to get 150 signatures within 30 days. To get an official response, petitions need 25,000 signatures within 30 days.
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Similar petitions from other states have also been filed including: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Tennessee. However, unlike the petition from Texas, none of these states had reached the 25,000-signature threshold to get an official White House response as of Monday evening.
According to the Texas State Library and Archives Commission, a 1866 proclamation signed by then-President Andrew Johnson clearly spelled out that no state had the right to leave the union:
"...It is the manifest determination of the American people that no State, of its own will, has a right or power to go out of or separate itself from, or be separated from the American Union; and that, therefore, each State ought to remain and constitute an integral part of the United States..."
The flurry of petitions are likely just the consequence of voters unhappy with last week's presidential election results. University of Texas at Austin Assistant Professor Jason Casellas told NBC News that's likely the case in Texas, where 57 percent of the state population's vote went for Republican Mitt Romney.
Catherine Frazier, press secretary for Texas Gov. Rick Perry, told NBC News Monday that the governor "believes in the greatness of our Union and nothing should be done to change it."
"But he also shares the frustrations many Americans have with our federal government," Frazier said in a statement. "Now more than ever our country needs strong leadership from states like Texas, that are making tough decisions to live within their means, keep taxes low and provide opportunities to job creators so their citizens can provide for their families and prosper."
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Leave a Comment:
How do we expedite this? Can we call a Constitutional Convention to amend our US Constitution to officially and irrevocably separate our Union from the State of Texas? They were there own republic once. Many Texans would like to return to those days. I highly endorse this idea!
I somehow suspect that not one of those wanting to secede were complaining the entire time the rest of us had to deal with your Texan in the White House.
Amen Charles no one from Texas says anything about that do they!
The Dixie Chicks did and look what it got them.
Fayett - you know what? You're right. But "back then" people expected others to respect the POTUS even if you didn't agree with him. They would fit right in today.
It's hard to respect a liar and a coward.
A couple of observations.
No one is going to secede. That just will not happen. Sign all the petitions you want.
During the Civil War it was the Democrats who seceded wanting to keep their slaves. Now it is the Republicans who want to secede to keep from becoming slaves.
Notice the response from those of the left wing persuasion. They are more than happy to kick their fellow Americans out if they don't agree with them. President Lincoln was willing to do whatever he had to, to keep the Union together. Left wing Democrats seem willing to throw it away.
You are truly the party of "my way or the highway." Sad and pathetic.
Stupid posting
Rob99 Stupid poster.
Or perhaps if people really want to leave so badly they can just do that. TX isn't just made up of people who want to secede, so how about you guys go off and start your own country somewhere else outside the US? We are all about choice, so we will support your choice to move out of the US. Then the people who actually want to live in the US will be left in TX. It sounds reasonable to me.
wolfpack, so you're saying we should beg a bunch of treasonous jerks to stay, is that it? Do you know what the term "delusional" means? Oh, and the analogy about slavery? Not only is it stupid, it is offensive.
No, "my way or the highway" would be the mantra of those who whine and want to secede because they didn't get the guy they wanted elected.
you got it backwards wolf,
starting your own country means rejecting this one, and that's their rather sarcastic point: "you folks have is soooo wrong and we texans have it all figured out. if we could just free ourselves from your baggage we could succeed beyond our wildest dreams."
and you expect non texans to be receptive to that kind of message? or to paraphrase it a bit:
do it our way or we're hitting the highway. self centered arrogant b@$+rd$.
Please STOP referring to the secessionists as "Texans." I am a Texan, and not a single person I know wants to secede. The majority of these comments are highly offensive to me.
That said, it's also embarrassing this is news. Not just in Texas, but anywhere these petitions have cropped up (including places like NY). It's idiots leading idiots.
But PLEASE stop looping us all in together.
We should trade Texas to Mexico in exchange for oil.
25,000 signatures is easy to get for anything in this Country. I bet I can get 25000 signatures in every state to declare Earth-is-flat. I say, let Texas go and be a lesson to everyone else. See how quickly they run back to USA to get back the Federal money they suck up.
I'm sure you socialists will sign that.
what areyou saying? omg you think this earth ISNT flat?
too much hatred
Can we start a fake petition? Any good ideas? I'd love to hear Obama be required to comment on whether or not How I Met Your Mother HAS to tell America who the mother actually is.
Honestly, the people who are starting this just to get Obama to review it are the worst. Also, probably the same people complaining about him playing basketball last Tuesday. Talk about wasting time.
Bye Bye Texas, don't let the door hit you in the ass.
Let Texas sucede. Then attack them to bring them democracy and take their oil.
Lol! That was classic!
Hahaha
If I move to Texas will I still get my SS check ?
warren,
No, Texas is against entitlements, what it calls government hand outs, get a share-cropper job for a $1.25 an hour from a Texas land baron.
i hate dammitcrats. just because you paid for s s it isnt like insurance or anything, you got too old or disabled to support damitcratic political agenda's so all thatyou paid into it is worthless, now you are their slave, dependent upon "entitlements"?
If you worked your entire life and paid into SS, it is not a freaking handout. It is not an entitlement. It is paid into and owed back to you when you are eligible to begin drawing off of it. When in the hell is anyone going to understand that?
@anymouse, you need to go take a class about the beginning of the SS program til now. I know the GOP has mishandled more than it's share of SS, you would find that out if you would just educate yourself instead of get on here and spew your hate, show some class. If you don't want to be an American citizen anymore, I know of two ways out for you.
Tixis is a state of mind or as we can plainly see from the petition and discussion loss of sanity or psychosis. Tixsis as a separate country would be a blessing to the rest of us. There is no doubt Tixis can make it on its own however, they owe the rest of100 trillion dollars for all the "stuff" they've taken, for the federal lands they will receive. Having watched their legislature and governor for the past 20 years there is little doubt they will implode. So let's make it clear that once they leave it is forever no reversals. Passports to the rest of the US from Tixis will cost $100,000 and be good for 6 months renewable at our pleasure. If you don't like it, don't come. I can see a good business opportunity. As my mammy always told me "Tixis. That's where they kill presidents". No we haven't forgiven you for JFK. PS we want to take back the entire space program and facilities.They will be shipped elsewhere. Now we don't have to worry about your banning books, global warming deniers and anti-evolutionists. How soon can you leave? Please let Mr. Obama know so we can help you beat the deadline.
Get out - don't let the door hit you.....you know the rest
I would love for Texas to become its own country. It would make the united in states more accurate.
there is nothing united in these states. i have NEVER been in a town bigger than what you yankees would call a speck on a worthless map, but i have served yall and heard what you say about us. so just gotta say.
no nevermind, yall have already fixed your preconceptions firmly. yall dont want dialogue, you want mindslaves
I say let's get out and let the bastards freeze in the dark...
An the first time a storm it texas nd cause 50 billion in damage.they want the good USA to send them aid...hehehehehe.
See what you socialists are doing to our glorious country.
No, but I do see what a bunch of ignorant idiots are doing to Texas (not that I care) ......Hook em Horns......!!!
I don't blame them. The country is over run with socialists and we just elected the same one in again.
Silly people. Socialists...I don't think so. You have no clue, but it makes a nice talking point.
I'm surprised most of these clowns can even spell socialist, given that they don't even know what it means. They heard Beck say it and then just started parroting him.
Love it
I don't see socialists but I do see bigots!
Please allow them to go. Matter of fact, I will personally get a petition started to add Sarah Palin, Dickhead Trump, R. Santorum, M. Bachmann, R. Limpbaugh, P. Roberts, B. Graham, Fox and friends, M.Steele and all African American Republicans.....Hold on let me make a trip to Ms, Ole Miss in particular to load up a few folks fromOxford, Sorry Archie. As I write this, I realize that I will probably run out of ink before I list all the folks I wish to take this journey so I'll stop now. I'm going to buy me an F250, and personally drop off the rest of my list.........
I'd vote to cut Alaska into two states and make Texas 3rd largest.
Can we sign the petition even if we don't live in Texas?
If they leave the union, who do we make fun of then?
Us in Florida.
You can't find any state funnier than Texas. So surrender now. Rick Perry is cradling a jar of jam like a small and precious baby right now, and laughing with a goofy smile on his face.
I say let Texas secede, but only if they take Mississippi and Alabama with them. I suppose they would also have to take Louisiana, if only to maintain continuous borders. Just form one great big nation called Rednex. And when they come screaming for foreign aid from the US (and you know they would), just laugh at them and say "well, you wanted to be independent--well now you are."
Thats lovely. Let your liberal bigotry shine through.
Well now, I live in AL and I don't want to secede. Not everyone in TX or any other state is like that. I say let them move out of the US and start their own country.
Texas, please take Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana with you
Yes, Texas, PLEASE LEAVE. Where can I sign the petition???
Seems like the threshold of 25,000 names in a month is a little low given Texas has 25ish million people. I wonder what an official white house response is suppose to include and it seems like it should pass through the state government first.
Since we stole Texas from the Mexicans many years ago I say we give it back to them - no more "problems" with illegal immigrants, either!
We didn't steal it, we won it.
Texas won their own independence from Mexico without the help from USA.
... we had some help.
Houstonvoice, I also live in Houston and have on and off for 38 years. Stop kissing all the liberal bigots' arses on here. I don't want to secede either but I am sick of reading all these ignorant anti-Texas, anti-any state that isn't on the East or West-Coast comments.
There are intelligent people ALL OVER THIS COUNTRY and you don't have to live in a titty baby blue state to be one. I have relatives in New York, a blue state OF COURSE, and they love visiting Texas and I love visiting them. But we all agree we wouldn't want to switch places. Texas is too hot for them and New York is too "NOT TEXAS" for me. But everyone I have met in my visits to New York and California as well have always been super nice, cool peeps to me. STOP BEING so @!$%#ing judgmental. This is a great country and I am betting that most of the Texas haters on here have never even been to my great state. So slag off.
I lived there for eight years. Some of it I liked, some of it I did not. It's not the "state of Texas" wanting to succeed. It is radical right wing, sore losers who will get to vote again in another 4 years for their choice. I'm not a Texas hater. I am against the ungrateful people who are proposing and signing the petition. United we stand, divided we fall. Just sayin.
How can citizens learn the last names and addresses of the people who signed the petition?
I'd like to know if the signatures include wacko family members who in recent years up and moved to Texas, which perplexed many people at the time. After they moved, they cited the secession movement as a primary reason for moving there.
Despite receiving infinitely more in benefits than they paid into the system, they love to bitch and moan about how their retirement and healthcare benefits are never enough. All the while, they fault everyone else for their woes, especially immigrants, minorities and the changing social fabric in the U.S. Then they have the audacity to continue sucking off the government, yet they want to seceded. If these traitors want to leave so darn bad, then it's time the rest of us know their names and locations and for the government to cut them off.
What a bunch of poor sports, if you aren't going to let our guy be president and enact Christian shariah law, we are going to take our ball and leave..............good riddance
Looks like I'm moving to Texas. Better start wearing my cowboy boots again.
Bye! Don't let the swingin' door hit ya' where the good Lord split ya'. And you'll need those boots to wade through all the you-know-what.
Mephisto,I was thinking the same thing.
Winter is here when we cut off their oil and natural gas they come crying to us. Just think we won't have to pay to have it shipped up north.
I have many stockpiles of firewood. I don't need your dam natural gas. Have horses to ride so I don't need your oil.
Here's a thought, find all people that have signed all these petitions and commission all cruise lines to ship them anywhere but here. They are showing their disloyalty to this country after men and women have fought and died for them and they don't deserve to stay on American soil.