Dr. Martin Hash Podcast

The idea of a State seceding from the United States comes up regularly among political novices. It's a fun concept to imagine but unilateral secession was decided in the most dramatic way possible, the Civil War, and if that wasn't enough, the Supreme Court nixed the idea too. It could possibly happen if the rest of the U.S. agreed but since secession would affect the lives and livelihoods of so many people outside that State, it seems extremely unlikely there would be bilateral agreement. Usually, the idea comes up in the context of abortion or guns, but we also hear it when the socialists seem to be gaining ground.

The easy solution for individuals unhappy with the law where they live is to recognize that there's a whole world out there, so go find some nation that likes both guns and outlaws abortion; why would you choose to tear America apart when just you could just move? If you were a true patriot and loved America, you wouldn't want to see it in a civil war, and there really is only a relatively small number of you. Most people like being able to wake up in the morning and not caring which State they're in. Actually, as a nation of liberty, we probably should put Secession Rights on a national ballot every century or so, or have a Constitutional Convention. What would a 28th Amendment look like? "Federal Law does not apply to the States." Wait, for that, all we have to do is repeal Article VI, the Supremacy Clause.