What if US states had the same autonomy as EU countries? Theoretically, Vermont could become a social democracy just like Malta—after all, they have the same population size and GDP per capita. California has the same population as Spain and is twice as rich by GDP per capita—they could afford to subsidize childcare, healthcare, and education just like Spain. Despite being our least populous state, Wyoming is richer than Sweden or the Netherlands on a per capita basis—it could establish a sovereign wealth fund just like Norway does, investing its surplus oil revenues for the benefit of its citizens. We don’t need to talk about secession to make this a reality, just taxation.

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