An idiot on Morning Joe (January 3, 2022) promoted his futuristic book and stoking fears: Succession of individual states of the United States – like Texas. Succession will not happen. The economic consequences for each such state will be disastrous.

The idiot was vague about the legal complications arising when a state tries to leave the United States. Before legal complications will come the economic consequences. What would the independent country of Texas be forced to do?

RAISE TAXES A LOT

Texas has the Texas Rangers, fine and fit group of law enforcement personnel, counting 200 or so persons. That’s not enough to police a small Texas city, let alone defend it.
Texas would have to pay for the state’s defense because the United States Government would leave. The Federal government would take all its military equipment and personnel and move it all to the remaining states. Texas has no Navy; it has no Coast Guard; it has no Army; there is no Marine Corps; there is no effective Air Force.

Start a military from scratch in the 2020s. What are the costs? Who wants to serve? There will be compulsory military service. Texans who are first most Americans, will leave before being compelled to serve. If evading the draft during Vietnam was bad, think about draft evasion during the Internet age.

Texas needs to improve its infrastructure which it will have to do on its own. Everyone knows they have bad electrical connections. And no more money from the Infrastructure Bill passed in 2021. Indeed, most Texas Congressmen and Senators voted against it.

POOR ECONOMY

Texas currently prides itself on a solid economy, low taxes and productive people. If Texas wants to remain prosperous, it should follow the example of Rhode Island. In 1790 the Rhodes did not want to ratify the United States Constitution, while the 12 other states had done so. Congress passed tariffs against imports from Rhode Island. So how long will it take before the United States passes tariffs on Texas products? How much will the Texas economy not grow? Will new companies go to Texas? Will companies in general move from Texas?

How long? A year.

NEW POPULATION

When Texas becomes independent, with foreign border exposure on the south and west, and it has no military and no border guard, Mexicans and persons from other countries will emigrate. How will the Texans handle the unending surge? More of them will enter Texas than are wanted; there will not be enough low paying jobs. Meanwhile, Americans living in Texas will leave.

The day will come when political power shifts to the emigrants. They will tear down the Alamo, and every town square will be required to erect a statute of Santa Anna: For some persons Santa Anna is a forgotten person of civil worship.

Next step: Texas becomes part of Mexico.

REENTRY INTO UNITED STATES

It’s no so simple. All past agreements are historical oddities and void. Texas will become a territory of the United States and under the rule of Congress, much like Puerto Rico is today. I doubt if a Congress of the future will allow Texas to exist in its present landmass. Before reentering the United States, parts of Texas can be chiseled off and given to Oklahoma, New Mexico and Louisiana (reasons for those states not to leave the U.S.A). The remainder can be broken into separate states, not all at the same time but whenever Congress is generous and feels another state is needed.

So this is the reaction of the day: New York author raises alarms about the Texas Succession movement, while overlooking the obvious: Texas secessionists are idiots. Wanting to spread fear, New York publishers, also idiots, give author an advance and publish QAnon speculations. The idiots of Morning Joe advance the rumors of terror and interview author who ineptly and incompletely tells how real his book is.