Puerto Rico

October 4, 2005 9:11 AM

What does Puerto Rico gain by being part of the US? What does the US gain by having Puerto Rico as a possession?

The question could apply to other non-state territories of the US as well, but my interest was sparked by the recent assassination of a Puerto Rican separatist in his home.

posted by leapingsheep to Law & Government (19 answers total)

What does Puerto Rico gain by being part of the US?

Freedom of travel to the US proper
Easier access to US development dollars and programs
Easier import/export to the US proper -- there's drug manufacturing in PR that takes advantage of both of these *and* cheaper labor in PR.

What does the US gain by having Puerto Rico as a possession?

Not much; this is more an "It seemed the thing to do in 1898" issue. Until recently, the Navy gained by having a small island nearby to use for target practice.

K1 couples can go to Puerto Rico or the USVI for their honeymoons without screwing up the Foreign Person's immigration status by leaving the US. Ya gotta be careful that your travel plans don't have you setting foot on foreign soil though, even accidentally.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 9:23 AM on October 4, 2005

Puerto Rico gets American military protection (woo hoo!), and huge advantages from being able to trade as a part of the US (including NAFTA, etc.)
posted by elquien at 9:29 AM on October 4, 2005

they also "get" to pay taxes without being able to vote.
posted by yonation at 9:33 AM on October 4, 2005

Well that's a little inaccurate. They do get to vote in local elections, for the governor and legislature, and they don't pay federal taxes, just local taxes.
posted by smackfu at 9:53 AM on October 4, 2005

And when they're in a state, they get to vote in federal elections same as anyone else in the state. They're in more or less the same position as DC residents, except no Presidential vote either.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 10:49 AM on October 4, 2005

I should point out that referenda have been held in PR every few years as to whether it should be a state, and it has lost every time. This angers me each time, but I'm not Puerto Rican, so I'm not sure I'm in a position to be angry.
posted by waldo at 10:55 AM on October 4, 2005

smackfu is right, Puerto Rico residents pay no federal taxes (though they do pay social security and local taxes).
This is a big difference compared to DC residents, who are subject to federal taxation without representation, plus higher local taxes than commuters from MD and VA.
posted by exogenous at 11:32 AM on October 4, 2005

Ya gotta be careful that your travel plans don't have you setting foot on foreign soil though, even accidentally.

Not if you get Advance Parole first.

Puerto Rico also gets to have their economy propped up by the US as well as a stable currency, unlike many parts of Latin America.
posted by Pollomacho at 1:25 PM on October 4, 2005

Response by poster: So...basically all the US gets out of this is a lovely vacation spot? Why would they assassinate that guy then? What are they defending so passionately?
posted by leapingsheep at 1:39 PM on October 4, 2005

Puerto Rico and US Territories like Guam, Yap, and the Federated States of Micronesia can receive Federal Disaster Aid through FEMA's Individual's & Household's program.
posted by ktrey at 1:48 PM on October 4, 2005

Not if you get Advance Parole first.

Sure, but what's the probability of being able to get AP overnight so you can go on your honeymoon on the morning after your wedding night?
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 1:51 PM on October 4, 2005

Back in the days of Big Naval Power being supreme in combat (unlike today's air superiority), having a bunch of islands in scattered and opportune areas of the world was a pretty good idea. It still is, frankly; look at Diego Garcia. And you can add Hawaii and the Phillipines to the "list of random islands and island chains we planted flags on", though we later gave them statehood and their independence, respectively.
posted by Asparagirl at 1:57 PM on October 4, 2005

ktrey: The Federated States of Micronesia is not a U.S. territory—it is an independent nation in free association with the U.S. Yap is a part of the FSM.
posted by grouse at 2:02 PM on October 4, 2005

Sure, but what's the probability of being able to get AP overnight so you can go on your honeymoon on the morning after your wedding night?

I would think that most people who go overseas on their honeymoon don't buy the tickets the day of their wedding (you're right though that CIS takes so long to decide AP that you'd have to have everything all planned out way in advance).
posted by Pollomacho at 2:04 PM on October 4, 2005

Personally, I don't see how we could fit in that extra star in our flag scheme. It just wouldn't be aesthetic at all.

In a more serious tone, I don't think the United States would bother assassinating a seperatist Puerto Rican. I think PR is pretty happy where it is, it gets great benefits with little to no real negative problems. Those annoying American tourists? So what, they don't speak Spanish and are terrified of downtown San Juan and all major highways.
posted by Atreides at 2:46 PM on October 4, 2005

If PR became a state we'd lose the advantage of having exactly 50 states, an attractive multiple of 10. If PR became a state we'd have to manufacture millions of new flags with an awkward asymmetrical star. If PR became a state we might see an unwelcome surge in the national popularity of Rosie Perez.

All the benefits would go one way, so no thank you.
posted by dgaicun at 5:28 PM on October 4, 2005

Actually, it would be easy to modify the flag to accommodate 51 stars. One option would be to have six rows, three of which would have 9 stars, and three with 8 stars (alternating). There are other possibilities as well. Recall the there have been US flags with 48 stars and 49 stars, among other things.
posted by epimorph at 7:39 PM on October 4, 2005

Those flags sucked.
posted by dgaicun at 10:50 PM on October 4, 2005

The 48-star flag was cool, with its neat little square pattern. Until recently when some party pooper noticed, our local school board flew it proudly in its lobby (and not as a historical object). Incidentally, that 49-star flag was pretty short-lived, though actually kind of cool looking also.

Subject at hand: Yeah, I've been wondering why we keep Puerto Rico around, too. I think I once heard that they get social welfare benefits from the feds also -- again, without paying federal taxes. Can anyone confirm? Seems like it's definitely a losing deal for the US, except for two possible reasons I see: a) macho imperialist "we still kinda have a colony" feelings left over from the 1890s; and/or b) the big brother-ish, helping keep our friends afloat attitude (the stable currency, good military, "look how we help out these people" argument).

Worth it? To someone, evidently.
posted by SuperNova at 12:16 AM on October 5, 2005