Fearing that one of the two other status options may win, specifically the “Free Association” option, members of the Puerto Rican statehood movement plan to pressure House Natural Resources Committee chair Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ) to revise the language of a draft bill that looks to resolve Puerto Rico’s 100-plus status issue once and for all, according to a draft letter provided to Latino Rebels by an anonymous source directly familiar with the proceedings.

Latino Rebels Radio: April 21, 2022

Ahead of President Biden’s State of the Union Address on Tuesday evening, Latino Rebels asked 14 senators whether they supported statehood for Puerto Rico, a U.S. colonial possession since the 1800s.

Scott’s words should fall hard on advocates of Puerto Rican statehood, as he has been one of the movement’s most prominent proponents in government.

On Thursday, a letter was sent to the chairman of the U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources, Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ), and the ranking member, Bruce Westerman (R-AR), from a bipartisan coalition of 51 organizations advocating for Puerto Rican statehood.

Don Quixote’s elusive quest is a fitting metaphor for Puerto Rico’s statehood movement.

Organizers shared a lengthy statement about the demonstrations.

About 50 Puerto Rico statehood supporters gathered Tuesday in Union Square on Capitol Hill to support H.R. 1522, the Puerto Rico Statehood Admission Act.

Less than 5% of Puerto Rico’s voters showed up on Sunday.

With his sights locked on the governor’s mansion in 2024, Juan Dalmau understands the importance of timing in Puerto Rico.

“We find that statehood starts off at a lower level of support when other options are present, though ultimately it wins in each case,” the authors wrote.

“The principled position, especially for the head of that colonizing power, is to say that people should have a process of self-determination and to not put your thumb on the scale of one direction or another,” Ocasio-Cortez told Axios.

“I have the firm conviction that the vote in favor of statehood must receive a direct and honest response from the U.S. Congress and from all who have a responsibility for their consequences,” Dalmau said in Spanish. “Yet, what was never consulted with the people of Puerto Rico was the use of public funds that would pay for the exorbitant salaries of six people who will pretend to go to Washington and do the same functions that three past Resident Commissioner of the statehood party have been doing for the last 17 years. That would be to lobby in favor of the election. That spending item was never part of the ballot.”

“I don’t agree with them. I am not going to support their statehood bill until we straighten Puerto Rico out,” Schumer said.

“I believe you will see bills being introduced in the House at the latest by mid-March of this year, so within a month,” Pierluisi told Axios’ Alexi McCammond during an Axios on HBO interview that aired on Sunday.

I offer the following as a historian and political analyst and not seeking to promote whatever solution to the Puerto Rican status issue.

There is nothing progressive about that.

Rather than collapsing, the statehood movement is evolving and it is advancing.

The best that Puerto Ricans can achieve under colonial rule is to elect responsible officials who will enact policies to alleviate widespread economic and social suffering in the archipelago.

The United States prefers to maintain the status quo and keep Puerto Rico a colony.

The fact that Puerto Rico has a vast conservative electorate, and the grand majority of these voters support statehood, begs the question of why the GOP would even consider alienating a future constituency.