MAGA state lawmakers in Indiana and Iowa are making noises about getting rural edge counties from Illinois and Minnesota, respectively, to carve themselves off and leech onto their states.
In Indiana, state House Speaker Todd Huston on Thursday introduced a bill encouraging nearly three dozen counties that have already voted in various referenda to secede from Illinois to join the Hoosier State instead, the Danville Commercial-News reports. “We think instead of seceding and creating a 51st state, they should just join us,” Huston said while introducing his legislation, HB 1008, to establish the Indiana-Illinois Boundary Adjustment Commission. “We match their priorities, their interests and we’re excited about having that conversation this year. And to all of our neighbors to the west, we hear your frustrations and then invite you to join us in a low-cost, low-tax Indiana.”
In Iowa, state Senator Mike Bousselot this week tweeted he was introducing a bill to have the Hawkeye State buy up the nine Minnesota counties bordering to the north, per the Rochester Post-Bulletin. “Make Minnesota Iowa Again! Our new Iowans, former MN residents, will have lower income, sales, business taxes. A more farm friendly state. And a better managed state. Gov Walz may say it’s just ‘rocks and cows’ but we see opportunity!” Bousselot wrote, referring to Walz’s 2017 comment when he said the southern part of the state was “mostly rocks and cows.” And as fucking stupid as this assclown sounds with “Make Minnesota Iowa Again!” it’s technically true, based on historical fact. Until 1846 the pre-statehood Iowa Territory did encompass the parts of present-day Minnesota west of the Mississippi River, all nine of these present-day counties included in that jurisdiction.