Puerto Rico

[Townhallsavoy]

51st state?

I really like rice and bean dishes....

[bottomfeeder]

Puerto Rican food is actually some of the best I have ever taste. And their women aren't bad either.

[AUChizad]

Puerto Rican food is actually some of the best I have ever taste. And their women aren't bad either.

Meh, not my type.

[AUChizad]

In all seriousness, I can already predict the adamant dismay that there may be a state full of Spanish speaking brown people, but this would actually be very good for the US.

Right now, they are for all intents and purposes, a US states, except they don't pay the US government any federal taxes. Puerto Ricans are US citizens. The current situation is win/win for them, with the only downside to them being that they can't vote in the presidential elections, and they don't get any Senate representation.

[The Six]

8 more electoral votes the Republicans will have no idea how to reach.

[CCTAU]

8 more electoral votes the Republicans will have no idea how to reach.

You are a racist. You do not like the brown peoples!

[AUChizad]

From The Daily Caller from about two years ago.

http://dailycaller.com/2011/03/25/puerto-ricans-should-pay-federal-income-taxes/

I recently visited my wife’s family in Puerto Rico. I returned home with a better understanding of Republicans’ anger over the enormous amount of federal aid given to Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory whose residents don’t pay federal income taxes. Though not a majority, a significant number of the Puerto Ricans I’ve observed don’t care about learning English, the Pledge of Allegiance or the national anthem.

Whether Puerto Rico becomes a state — a presidential task force this month recommended that the U.S. territory hold a referendum on its relationship with the United States — is beside the point. As long as Puerto Rico and its residents receive U.S. aid and enjoy the benefits of U.S. citizenship, they should pay federal income taxes in addition to the Social Security and Medicare taxes they already pay.

The United States provided Puerto Rico with $21.4 billion in aid and benefits in 2009, according to the Consolidated Federal Funds Report compiled by the U.S. Census Bureau. The total for 2010 likely will reach $25 billion, not counting about $4.4 billion in stimulus funding and $430 million in rum rebates that Puerto Rico annually receives from the U.S. Treasury. The amount that the U.S. spends on Puerto Rico will increase significantly over the next 20 years, probably hitting $35-40 billion.

Though Puerto Ricans pay federal taxes on income generated outside of Puerto Rico, there’s still a more than $20 billion imbalance between the taxes they pay and the benefits they receive. Although some states receive more federal funds than they contribute, Puerto Rico’s per capita imbalance is far larger than any state’s.

Residents of Washington, D.C., another federal territory, also lack voting representation in Congress — but they pay federal income taxes. When Alaska and Hawaii were U.S. territories, their residents also paid federal income taxes. The four million Puerto Ricans residing in Puerto Rico should do the same.

We should not allow the thousands of millionaires residing on the island to get the best of both worlds: U.S. citizenship without having to pay federal income taxes. This gravy train for Puerto Ricans should end immediately. If Puerto Ricans don’t like this, they can advocate for statehood or an independent republic — but the federal government shouldn’t be supporting a Caribbean welfare paradise. Congress should not allow Puerto Ricans to continue taking advantage of the U.S.’s benefits. Puerto Ricans need to contribute their fair share to the U.S. Treasury.

[Vandy Vol]

Rome demands its tribute!

[bottomfeeder]

In all seriousness, I can already predict the adamant dismay that there may be a state full of Spanish speaking brown people, but this would actually be very good for the US.

Right now, they are for all intents and purposes, a US states, except they don't pay the US government any federal taxes. Puerto Ricans are US citizens. The current situation is win/win for them, with the only downside to them being that they can't vote in the presidential elections, and they don't get any Senate representation.

The make below the minimum taxable income.