Some genies can’t be put back in the bottle.
Reports of #Calexit’s demise are premature. Yes, its backers have withdrawn an initiative, after reports about the Russia-philia of one of its backers. But at least some of those backers are moving onto other movements to push forward the idea of California as its own country.
#Calexit isn’t like to go too far as long as President Trump is in office. Put simply, most of California loathes Trump, and the president loathes California. Since he would love to see us go away, there’s no way we’ll go. And anyone who pushes #Calexit can be fairly accused of helping Trump.
But in the long run, the idea of California as a country will stay with us. It’s a very Californian idea—we are different, the Great Exception, in Carey McWilliams’ famous words. And we have the character and economy of a successful, larger-than-average country. In many ways, our interests are different than those of the United States.
As I’ve written before, it’s very Californian to think of making a big departure from the country, or having your part of California break away from the rest of the state. If you’re not somewhat open to the idea of breaking away, you probably don’t belong here.
But not now. California can’t allow itself to be chased away. And it doesn’t want to flea the U.S. when our nation is in peril. The state needs to save the country first.