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In the aftermath of the June 2016 referendum allowing the United Kingdom to leave the European
Union, some back in the United States have started wondering if they can do it own referendum. In
particular, the long standing Texas independence movement, which dates back to when Texas was
still a part of Mexico, has seen a huge resurgence. More than a quarter of a million people have
allegedly pledged their vote to secede, according to the Texas Nationalist Movement. But is
secession even possible? Could Texas see their own version of Brexit? A Texit?
Well, as a matter of a fact, for about ten years in the mid 1800s, The Republic of Texas
was an independent, sovereign country. This came about after the Texas Revolution in 1835
as a result of more and more Americans moving into the Mexican province of Texas, and clashing
with the Mexican government. But Texas the country was sort of a failure. It amassed
a huge national debt and was barely able to police or defend itself. It did, however maintain
a quiet trade relationship with the British, which had a foreign policy of excluding countries
which supported slavery. British influence threatened to abolish slavery in Texas, which
would undermine the American slave trade. So, to avoid potentially losing slavery, the
US negotiated the annexation of Texas as the 28th state in 1845. Since then, Texas has
integrated a cultural independence movement from the rest of the US, and today it has
reared its head once again.
So, since Texas used to be its own country, is there some legal way for it to become one
again? Well, technically, the US constitution doesn’t expressly allow or prohibit state
secession. Some argue that certain passages imply one or the other, but there is no clear
delineation. Usually, when that happens, it is up to the Supreme Court to decide on the
topic, which indirectly came up in 1869, just 24 years after the annexation. The case of
Texas v. White was based on the argument that during the Civil War, Texas had seceded alongside
the rest of the Confederate states, and thus any actions it had taken were as a seceded
state. But the Supreme Court found that just because they’d said they seceded didn’t
make it so, and based on the Articles of Confederation, the United States is a “perpetual union”.
Thus, no state can secede simply through actions or declarations by that state.
In the end, no matter how many resolutions, or conferences, or legal maneuvering, there’s
no clear way for a state to secede. And despite how popular of a topic Texan secession has
been, an overwhelming majority of Texans have no real interest in leaving the United States.
Just 18% said they would vote to secede, with 75% voting to stay in a Rasmussen poll. So
even if Texas could legally secede, it almost certainly wouldn’t anyway.
But let’s say the Supreme Court reverses itself and allows Texas to secede, could the
new Republic stand on it’s own? Just how powerful is Texas? Find out by watching this
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