WASHINGTON, D.C. – Puerto Rico officials are addressing a report that claims President Donald Trump “is being lobbied to make Puerto Rico an independent nation”. Officials described it as a “rumor” and said it started circulating right after Puerto Rico’s Governor Jenniffer Gonzalez visited Washington to advocate for the island to become the 51st state.
“This is not a political movement, it’s a people’s movement,” Gov. Gonzalez said during a press conference in Washington last week. By the end of the week, a DailyMail report claimed President Trump was being lobbied to make Puerto Rico an independent nation.
“We have a small group of people who don’t support statehood trying to create news for themselves [and] decided to push Friday afternoon a so-called executive order that was being considered by the White House,” said Gabriella Boffelli, the executive director of the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration (PRFAA). “That is not true.”
Boffelli said they talked to several people in the White House about this. “They had no knowledge of this so-called executive order or push for it,” said Boffelli. “That’s not something they’re tracking or on their radar.”
The DailyMail report claims “the order appears to have been drawn up by a congressional office and leaders of Puerto Rico secessionist efforts, and not the White House”. The publication reports that copies of the proposed text have been circulating in a few Capitol Hill offices. The report also claims the proposal notes “‘this plan results in $617.8 billion in savings for the U.S. while providing Puerto Rico with the necessary resources for economic self-sufficiency.’”
Puerto Ricans have consistently voted to become a state compared to other status options in the last couple of years. In the most recent election, 58 percent voted for statehood, 29 percent voted for independence and 12 percent voted for free association.
Puerto Ricans are US citizens. They pay federal taxes and serve in the military but because it is a territory, Gov. Gonzalez said the island and it’s three-million residents are treated different. For example, people living on the island do not have access to benefits like SSI. In Congress, they have a non-voting member in the House but don’t have representation in the Senate. Boffelli believes these independence rumors does not hurt the island’s chances of becoming the next US state.
“Our movement is large on the island,” said Boffelli about statehood. “And here [in Washington], we have a lot of supporters of statehood.”
Ultimately, it’s up to congress to decide Puerto Rico’s status. Legislation has been introduced to change the status for the island but those movements have not made a lot of progress.
