The most backward, unproductive and racist counties in northern California-- which voted overwhelmingly for Trump and where residents are refusing to get vaccinated-- want to secede. And in eastern Oregon, there's a similar situation-- backward counties are trying to join Idaho. There are crackpot voters in these kinds of places all over the country who want to secede from their states. Secession is in conservatives' DNA... always has been. California would be so much better off if the state bought one-way tickets to Idaho or Texas or wherever they want to go for all the unhappy, lazy maskless freeloaders in Lassen (74.5% Trump), Modoc (71.2% Trump), Tehama (66.6% Trump), and Shasta (65.4% Trump) counties. They can take their children... but not the land that is part of California. We should even pay them. They're bad for the state's gene pool.
Today I read about another state with the same opportunity to get rid of their bums: Maryland. The state has a panhandle in the northwest part of the state, with three rural counties: Garrett, Allegany and Washington. They want to join West Virginia. In some ways, the 3 counties are a lot like West Virginia or even worse. They have very small populations (Garrett is 98.8% white, Allegany is 89.2% white and Washington is 85.1% white), one small city-- Hagerstown-- between the 3 of them, and a lot of poverty. Garrett County has never voted for a Democratic presidential nominee (not FDR and not LBJ) and only 19.9% of the voters are registered Democrats. Allegany County has 29.5% registered Democrats and Washington County-- which did go for LBJ, but no Democrat since then-- has 33.2% registered Dems.
Let's look at how each county voted in 2020 and at their vaccination rates, which you know will show major correlation and is a perfect test for stupidity and ignorance. Keep in mind Maryland is one of the most well-vaccinated states-- 65%.
Garrett Co.- 76.9% Trump (44% fully vaccinated)
Allegany Co.- 68.2% Trump (49% fully vaccinated)
Washington Co.- 59.4% Trump (52% fully vaccinated)
Garrett County is the least vaccinated county in Maryland and, of course, the county that voted for Trump in the highest proportion. Who'd have guessed! The congressional district the 3 counties are in, however, isn't something they can be too happy about. With a PVI of D+8, they're never going to be able to elect some Trumpist nutcase to Congress and Trump only got 37.5% of the district.
So 6 Maryland Republican state legislators-- including Minority Leader Jason Buckel-- wrote to West Virginia House Speaker Roger Hanshaw (R) and Senate President Craig Blair (R) asking them to absorb the 3 counties. Neither Hanshaw nor Blair has any say in the matter. Delegates Wivell (District 2A) and Mike McKay (District 1C) signed one letter on behalf of Washington County, and Jason Buckel (District 1B), Wendell Beitzel (District 1A) and McKay, and state Senator George Edwards (District 1), signed another letter on behalf of Allegany and Garrett counties.
Writing for The Hill today, The CBS News affiliate in Baltimore reported that West Virginia is eager to get some new counties and has appealed to Virginia conservatives in the western part of the state to secede and join West Virginia as well, at least in part because West Virginia saw the steepest population drop in the country. It's also the poorest, least educated and least healthy state in the country. The 3 Maryland counties have tried to secede before and start their own state. That went nowhere.
According to Article IV, Section 3, of the U.S. Constitution, no new state can be formed within the jurisdiction of another state, or by joining parts of states, “without the Consent of the Legislatures of the States concerned as well as of the Congress.”
In other words, Maryland and West Virginia would have to agree first and then Congress would have to give the OK. None of that is likely to happen. Maryland should give everyone who wants to go a mobile home and pay then $1,000 if they agree to never try to resettle in Maryland.