Republican files bill in Texas House to let voters decide whether to secede from the U.S.
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Despite the filing of House Bill 3596, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1869 that no state could legally secede from the union.
A bill filed Monday by a Republican in the Texas House of Representatives plays into the long-held misconception that the Lone Star State can legally become its own nation.
House Bill 3596, filed by State Rep. Bryan Slaton, R-Royse City, would establish a referendum for Texas voters to decide whether the state should explore the possibility of seceding from the United States. If passed, the question “Should the State of Texas reassert its status as an independent nation,” would appear on the ballot in the state’s next general election this November.
“On this 187th anniversary of the fall of the Alamo, I’m proud to file this bill to let the people of Texas vote on the future of our state,” Slaton said in a statement. “Texas was born out of the desire for liberty and self-governance, and that desire continues to burn in the hearts of all Texans.”
Slaton, a far-right grandstander, also drew media attention in February for wasting two hours in an absurd and unsuccessful tag-team attempt to tack anti-transgender amendments onto a procedural resolution setting up this session’s House rules.
Legal experts largely agree that Slaton’s pipe dream of an independent Texas is just as absurd and also likely to end in failure.
The 1869 U.S. Supreme Court Case, Texas v. White, pretty much put the idea of secession to rest when the court ruled that no U.S. state could legally secede from the union, as previously reported by the Texas Tribune.
Even if the U.S. gave Texas the go-head to leave, it would face the complicated prospect of disentangling itself from the military bases and federal facilities on its soil and would also need to say “adios” to the millions it receives from the federal government for disaster relief and other bailouts.
Further, economists have warned that an independent Texas, which has drawn countless corporate investments in recent decades would likely be slamming the door on relocations and expansions of businesses that would rather stay part of the U.S., thank you very much.
All of which may explain why when Slaton and other lawmakers filed an identical bill during the 2021 session it received neither a hearing nor a vote, according to The Hill.
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