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   From: PFWTM@cumcast.net   
      
    Red States are dying.   
      
      
      
   Blue states contribute to the economy while red states are welfare states.   
      
   Rightists die younger than leftists as well.   
      
   The GOP’s Welfare States Problem: How Red America Drains Blue America   
      
   by Richard Gosk | Sep 17, 2025 | Economy   
      
      
   California’s economy is larger than the United Kingdom’s. New York sits at   
   the center of global finance. Massachusetts, Washington, Oregon, and other   
   blue states collectively represent over 60% of America’s GDP. In short, the   
   engine that powers the United States economy is overwhelmingly powered by   
   blue states.   
      
   And yet, the states most dependent on federal welfare, subsidies, and tax   
   redistribution are overwhelmingly Republican. These states drain resources   
   from the federal government while exerting disproportionate political   
   influence over how it operates.   
      
   Top Three Takeaways from the Article:   
      
   Republican-led states are net takers – relying heavily on federal dollars   
   to run their states that come mostly from blue state taxpayers.   
      
   Political representation is skewed – giving resource-draining red states   
   disproportionate power over national policy.   
      
   Blue states could push back – through interstate coordination, selective   
   compliance, or even secession threats, forcing a reckoning over who truly   
   sustains America.   
   Red States as Welfare States   
      
   Look at the numbers: states like Mississippi, West Virginia, Alabama, and   
   Kentucky consistently receive far more in federal spending than they   
   contribute in taxes. Mississippi receives about $2.13 in federal money for   
   every $1 it sends to Washington. Meanwhile, states like California and New   
   York send billions more to the federal government than they get back.   
      
   This means that the so-called “fiscally conservative” states are, in   
   reality, welfare states propped up by the wealth generated in blue states.   
   Without blue state subsidies, many red state governments would collapse   
   under the weight of their poverty rates, infrastructure needs, and   
   healthcare costs.   
   Political Power Without Economic Weight   
      
   Despite their dependency, red states hold outsized political power. The   
   Senate grants Wyoming’s 580,000 residents the same representation as   
   California’s 39 million. The Electoral College system compounds this   
   imbalance, handing disproportionate influence to rural states that   
   contribute relatively little to national economic output.   
      
   In practice, this means red states that drain federal resources wield veto   
   power over national policy. The states most reliant on federal welfare   
   dollars are the ones most aggressively blocking climate legislation,   
   healthcare reform, and education funding that the rest of the country   
   desperately needs.   
   What Blue States Could Do   
      
   The imbalance raises a provocative question: what if blue states stopped   
   playing along?   
      
   Blue states already experiment with interstate compacts, such as climate   
   agreements formed when Trump pulled the U.S. out of the Paris Accord. But   
   the options go much further:   
      
       Selective compliance with federal laws, much like Northern states   
   resisted fugitive slave laws in the 1850s.   
      
       Irish Democracy–style passive resistance, where millions quietly stop   
   cooperating with federal overreach.   
      
       Economic independence, with state-level initiatives in healthcare,   
   immigration policy, and even currency.   
      
   If pushed far enough, some argue that blue states could even explore the   
   possibility of secession, not as political theater but as a credible   
   negotiating tactic. After all, Quebec nearly left Canada twice, and each   
   time it forced major concessions.   
      
      
   The Harsh Truth   
      
   At the heart of the issue lies an uncomfortable reality: the red state   
   vision of America – one of social conservatism, weak social safety nets,   
   and corporate dominance – is subsidized by the very blue states they attack   
   as “socialist.”   
      
   The U.S. has two incompatible futures. One is a multi-ethnic democracy with   
   robust public institutions. The other is a regressive, exclusionary system   
   kept afloat only by federal redistribution. The former is paying for the   
   latter – and sooner or later, blue states may decide the cost is too high.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)