Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Texas secession petition grows on White House website. By Jana Kasperkevic

A flag flies after the funeral of Texas State Sen. Mario Gallegos at the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart Monday, Oct. 22, 2012, in Houston. Gallegos was a also a liazon for the Houston Fire Department.
Photo: Cody Duty, Houston Chronicle / © 2012 Houston Chronicle
WASHINGTON - When the White House promised that any online petition getting more than 25,000 signatures would get a thorough review and an official response, officials probably weren't thinking about requests for secession.
But on Monday - less than a week after President Barack Obama's re-election - a petition on the White House website calling for Texas to secede from the union has received more than 35,000 signatures, far more than similar requests from other states.
The White House website states that "if a petition gets enough support," which it defines as 25,000 signatures within 30 days, "White House staff will review it, ensure it's sent to the appropriate policy experts, and issue an official response." Shortly after 2:30 p.m. Central time on Monday, the petition passed that threshold.


The petition, created Friday, argues, "The U.S. continues to suffer economic difficulties stemming from the federal government's neglect to reform domestic and foreign spending." It further claims that American citizens are suffering "blatant abuses of their rights," pointing to the Transportation Security Administration and the National Defense Authorization Act, which allows for indefinite detention of terror suspects.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry has previously made comments suggesting he would consider withdrawing from the U.S.
"When we came into the nation in 1845, we were a republic, we were a stand-alone nation," Perry said in 2009. "And one of the deals was, we can leave anytime we want. So we're kind of thinking about that again."

Perry later clarified that he does not support secession and Monday his spokeswoman said he doesn't support the petition. "Governor Perry believes in the greatness of our Union and nothing should be done to change it," said spokeswoman Catherine Frazier. "But he also shares the frustrations many Americans have with our federal government."
She added: "Now more than ever our country needs strong leadership from states like Texas. We cannot allow Washington's tax and spend, one-size-fits-all mindset to jeopardize our children's future, undermine our personal liberties and drive our nation down a dangerous path to greater dependence of government."
No one seems to be taking the petition all that seriously.
I think it would take a civil war, frankly," said David Cole, constitutional law professor at Georgetown University Law School. "If I'm not mistaken, this was tried once before."
Texas is not the only state whose residents are petitioning for secession. It has been joined by a number of states, including North Carolina, Alabama, and Kentucky.
But as of Monday night, no other state had come close to the required 25,000 signatures.
On Monday afternoon, a counter-petition opposing secession popped up on the White House site. As of Monday night, it had just three signatures.

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