Here's Where It Gets Interesting - 39. Sharon Answers Your Questions #2

Episode Date: October 11, 2021

In this episode, Sharon sits down to answer your burning questions about the American government. From state secession and immigration to the Library of Congress artifacts and city council, Sharon fields questions that are piquing the interest of the Governerd community. Have a question for Sharon? Visit sharonmcmahon.com/podcast to record a voice memo with your question for consideration in the next Sharon Q&A episode. For more information on this episode including all resources and links discussed go to https://www.sharonmcmahon.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Hello, friends. Welcome to the second edition of Sharon Answers Your Questions. On the podcast page of my website, you can just go to SharonMcMahon.com slash podcast. Scroll all the way to the bottom, and there is a little orange button that allows you to record a voice memo for me. Via that system, you can leave me some of your questions that you might like me to answer on my podcast. So that is what we are doing today.

I am answering your questions. Let's get into this episode. I'm Sharon McMahon, and welcome to the Sharon Says So podcast. Hi, Sharon. This is Beth from upstate New York. On one of your previous episodes, you talked about the process of what would need to occur if Texas were to break up into several different states. And I was curious what that process would be like for New York. Living here, you often will hear people say things like Long Island should be its own state or New York City should be its own state. So I was just curious how that would work for New York and what kind of rules and regulations there might be for that. Great question. This is a question I've been asked a bunch of times. Can Illinois split up into

a couple of different states? Can Chicago become its own situation and then outstate Illinois become a different state? Can a chunk of Northern California join Idaho? You know what I'm saying? Where when we have a large metropolis that kind of governs state politics, state policies, et cetera, the question has been posed, could we just make this into a couple of different states? And the answer is that it is theoretically possible for a state to split up into multiple states, but it's never going to happen. So let me give you the mechanism by which it could be theoretically possible. So the Constitution says that a state cannot be formed from the boundaries of other states without congressional approval. So the first thing you would need is congressional approval. The state

would have to make the case to Congress, both houses of Congress and the president, that there is a dire need for multiple new states. Now, I'm going to hypothesize. I'm going to give you my educated opinion that Congress and the president are not interested in creating more states. They are not interested in upsetting the apple cart in terms of the balance of power. They are not interested in figuring out how to add new people to the Senate, to the House of Representatives, basically what's in it for them. And the answer is almost nothing. Now, I'm not saying that Congress only works on a what's in it for us kind of scenario, but there is very little political will to make something like this occur. And what I mean by political will is there is not this very, very

strong driving force to make something happen. Recently, when we had the COVID stimulus packages that were passed, there was a very strong driving force to get that done, right? All of these people were out of work. We had to try to save the economy, et cetera, et cetera. That's political will to make something occur. There is not that kind of political will with splitting New York or Illinois or any other state up into multiple sections. So before it could split up, it would need congressional approval. Additionally, in the state of New York, you would also need the permission of the state legislatures of every bordering state. So you would need the permission from Pennsylvania. You would need permission from New Jersey. You would need permission from Connecticut, from Massachusetts.

You would need permission from Vermont. All of those other states would have to say, yes, please. That sounds good to us. We approve. We want New York to be able to split up into other states. So that is why it's theoretically possible, but it's never going to actually happen because Congress is never going to vote for it. The president is not going to sign off on it. And neither are Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, or Vermont. Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, or Vermont. Okay, let's get into the next question, which comes from Mallory. Hey, Sharon.

One question I have for you is, can you talk a little bit about immigration, what it takes to be immigrated into the United States and become a citizen? Is it easy? Is it hard? I know people have a lot of mixed feelings about it. And so I just love to hear the facts. Thanks. All right. So just for clarity, you could live in the United States legally, but not become a citizen. There are many people that live in the United States as legal residents via a variety of programs. Like you've heard about people who have a green card, et cetera. You've heard about dreamers. Those are all methods of legally living in the United States. People come here on work visas. That is legal residency. It may not be permanent depending on

the type of residency, but that is legal residency. And that is different than citizenship. Because your question is specifically about immigrating to the United States and becoming a citizen, let's take a look at what that requires. Okay, the first step in becoming a U.S. citizen is that you have to have lived in the United States for at least five years. You have to have had a green card for at least five years. And we use the phrase green card, in reality, it just means permanent residency status. So you cannot obtain a green card, you cannot obtain permanent residency status if you enter the country illegally. So you must enter via a

legal means of immigration. And there are a variety of ways that can happen. These are the different ways that somebody can enter the United States and seek a green card, which by the way, you don't just show up one day and get a green card. The process of obtaining a green card, of being given lawful permanent residency, in many cases takes years. You can get a green card through your family, and that is given to people who are like the spouse of a US citizen or an unmarried child who is the child of a US citizen, the parent of aS. citizen, etc. I'm not going to go through every single possible way that you could get here via family, but that is one method that you can apply to have a green card. Another one is through employment. If you have a job in a highly

desirable field, like for example, the US government says, if you have extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics, if you're an outstanding professor or researcher, etc., there are many other examples as well, then you might be eligible to come to the United States and apply for permanent residency status. You can also seek permanent residency as what is called a special immigrant. And that is somebody who is, say, a religious worker. An example of that might be a monk or a nun. If you are a special immigrant juvenile, somebody who has been abandoned by their parents or they've been abused or under very specific circumstances, they might meet that criteria. If they are a member of

the U.S. Agency for Global Media, if you're a special reporter, if you are the employee of NATO, those are some examples of special immigrant status. If you are a refugee or an asylee, and those are people who seek protection inside the United States for a variety of reasons, that could range from persecution in the country that they came from. It could mean that they are fleeing a war. It could mean that they are fleeing a war. It could mean that they are fleeing an incredible natural disaster. But you are eligible to seek a green card if you are a refugee or an asylee. There are also categories for people who are victims of abuse, victims of crime, victims of human trafficking, and a variety of other special program types, like just for people from Cuba,

for example, or just for people from an American Indian born in Canada. There are a variety of special programs that you can apply to as well. But for most people, they're going to be seeking lawful permanent residency via family or employment, refugee or asylum status. Those other ones are perhaps a little less popular, but they exist as methods. So once you have sought your green card and you have had it for at least five years, there is an exception if you are the spouse of a US citizen, it's less time, you can then apply for what's called naturalization. is an exception if you are the spouse of a US citizen, it's less time. You can then apply for

what's called naturalization. And naturalization is the process of becoming a United States citizen when you were not born a United States citizen. So the naturalization process is actually very lengthy and very costly. It is not simple. It is not just filling out a form and being like, hi, I'd like to be a citizen. It takes a considerable amount of time, effort, and money to become a U.S. citizen. So some of the other eligibility requirements are that you have to be at least 18. You have to be able to read, write, and speak basic English. You have to be able to pass a citizenship test. And you have to be what the U.S. government says is a person of good moral character. Once

you have gone through the lengthy process of applying for naturalization, this is what the US government says is the 10-step process to becoming a citizen. You have to determine if you're already a citizen. There's a whole process for that. You have to determine if you are eligible to become a US citizen. There's a process for that. You have to fill out your application, pay your fees. Again, these things are not simple. It's not like just getting a library card. These are lengthy, expensive things that people go through. You have to get your biometrics appointment. And those are things like fingerprints. You have to have an interview.

Then wait to receive a decision from the immigration service. And sometimes that process alone can take years. Then once you have received a decision, let's say they approve you, then you have to make an appointment to take part in the naturalization ceremony, et cetera, et cetera. That's a lot of et ceteras. But it is a very lengthy process to become a US citizen. It is not quick and easy.

And that is just a very brief overview of what it takes to become naturalized in the United States. I hope that helps. Interior Chinatown is an all-new series based on the best-selling novel by Charles Yu about a struggling Asian actor who gets a bigger part than he expected when he witnesses a crime in Chinatown. Streaming November 19th only on Disney+. Walk with us. Connect to the land that connects us all.

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by adding your Visa Infinite Privilege Card to your OpenTable account. From there, you'll unlock first-come, first-served spots at select top restaurants when booking through OpenTable. Learn more at OpenTable.ca forward slash Visa Dining. Okay, let's move on to our next question, which comes from Leslie. Yes. Hi, Sharon. I'm interested in what strange and interesting things are in the Library of Congress. Leslie, do you work for the Library of Congress? Is this a test to see if I know what's in it? Well, okay. The Library of Congress,

so interesting to me. I love libraries just in general. I don't care how little it is. I like your little free libraries. I like the giant libraries. I love all the libraries. And of course, it's hard to imagine a better library than Library of Congress. The Library of Congress doesn't just have books though, okay? It has 164 million items besides books. So here are just a couple, a few, a handful of some of the things that I know are in the Library of Congress. So first of all, There is a palm print from Amelia Earhart. And it is like an ink print. If you rolled an ink pad or she pressed it on a piece of paper, I want to say it's from the 1930s.

Like a whole handprint of Amelia Earhart. And it was originally going to be part of a book about famous people's hands. Lots of people's hair is in the Library of Congress. Locks of just famous people like Thomas Jefferson has a lock of hair in the Library of Congress. James Madison has a little strand that they have braided of James Madison's hair. So famous people's hair, I know that that is in the Library of Congress. A lot of stuff related to Abraham Lincoln, the contents of Lincoln's pockets when he was assassinated, including money, including Confederate money. Another thing that is in the Library of Congress are things like recipes from famous people.

So Thomas Jefferson had a very famous vanilla ice cream recipe, and it is written in his own handwriting, just like on a little recipe card. This is what it says, two bottles of good cream, 15 yolks of eggs, a half something of sugar. I don't know what measurement he's abbreviating. And it says, mix the yolks and the sugar, et cetera. It gives all of the instructions in Thomas Jefferson's own handwriting. There's even a part where he crosses out some instructions and writes them again, like, ooh, that part wasn't right. Oh my gosh, what else? It has Rosa Parks's peanut butter pancake recipe. So when there is somebody influential and it's part of their writings, the Library of Congress would acquire something like that. You know what else the Library of

Congress has? Every tweet that has ever been written. Like Twitter donates their archives to the Library of Congress. Someday, y'all, historians in the future are going to go to the Library of Congress and read every tweet written by somebody they're trying to research. That is going to be a treasure trove of information to future historians, every tweet that's ever been written. The Library of Congress also has a huge collection of musical instruments. It has one of three Gutenberg Bibles. Literally every day, the Library of Congress acquires millions of new items. It is now actively preserving podcasts. So it will be interesting to see if this podcast ever makes it into the Library of Congress collection. The last message comes from Tori. Hi, Sharon. My name is Tori and I live in Minnesota and I love you. I will do my Minnesota accent with you for this. I want to get more involved in my local government. I've got a really big passion for our parks and kids and I've been trying to get in touch with my ward representative on city council. I've been trying to get in touch with my parks department and I just feel like I'm running into a brick wall. How do you engage in your local government? Because I've read that probably more change happens in local governments than on the national scene. So

I want to make a difference. Thanks. Such a great question because you're right that it actually is much easier to influence your local government than it is to influence the national government. If you live in California, you have two senators representing 35 million people. Whereas if you live in a city, you have city council that is directly elected by the people that live in the city, and they are much more apt to listen to their constituents than somebody who is trying to represent 35 million people. So the first thing that you need to figure out is the structure of your local government is, because you don't want to be spending your time contacting people who don't have any authority to actually make any kind of change in what it is that you are hoping to influence. So spend some time looking at the organization chart of your local government. And then also understand that so much of what happens in a local government is overseen by the legislative body of your local area. So that

could be a city council, a county council, however your location likes to phrase it, but that is the legislature of your city or county. And that is going to be the group that makes the rules, passes the local laws, distributes the local funding. For a school district, it's the school board. The school board has basically the legislature of a school district. So definitely do not discount becoming involved with your city or county or school board legislature, whatever it's called in your area. That can look like writing emails, placing phone calls, attending meetings, and also that can look like getting media attention for your issue. Let's say, for example, you have a city park that is super run down. Nobody collects the trash. It's just not safe for kids to play there. They don't cut the grass, whatever. And

you want to change that. You might think that, well, the best thing to do is to call the parks department and to say, hey, nobody's cutting the grass here. That could work. But what if they don't? You might actually have more luck going to a city council meeting. Those city council meetings are televised or they're videotaped and they are available online. you are bringing public awareness to an issue. And then you are bringing awareness to every single member of your city or county council to the fact that like, whoa, we have got some issues in the parks department, because ultimately it is up to the legislature, the group that makes the laws, to approve funding for things like the parks department. And if they are hearing from their constituents that nobody's picking up the the group that makes the laws, to approve funding for things like the Parks Department.

And if they are hearing from their constituents that nobody's picking up the trash, nobody's cutting the lawn, that can be a problem. Bringing the issue to the attention of the people who have been elected to represent you, do not underestimate the importance of that. I will also tell you two more things. The squeaky wheel absolutely gets the grease. Sending one email rarely fixes a problem. And the bigger the problem is, the more deeply entrenched the problem is, the less likely it is to be fixed by one email. Certainly an email is a place to start, but do not think that it's going to be fixed by sending an email. Be squeaky and be persistent. The more you bring something up to somebody's attention, the more likely it is to be top of mind.

In the best way possible, they're going to make you want to go away and they're going to do that by meeting the demand that you have. But if they don't ever know that it's an issue, then they can't ever meet your demands or meet your needs. Consider also running for city council or consider running for county council or whatever your local legislature is, because we need people who care about a commitment to facts. We need people who care about a commitment to listening to understand. We need people who care about the right things in government. Do not think that like, oh, I don't have any qualifications. There are no qualifications. I mean, you probably have to

be a resident of the area that you're trying to run for election in. You probably have to not be a convicted felon. You probably have to be a certain age, but there is no like, oh, you don't have the right PhD. No, that's not a thing. Do not underestimate what a small group of caring people can accomplish. So let's say you decide, you know what, running for office is not for me. One of the best things you can do is get your friends in on the action. If one email is good, 25 emails are better. What if you started an email or a phone call campaign and you provided potential scripts for people to send emails with and encourage them to change them, to personalize them? But what if you wrote up three possible emails and said, hey, send one of these emails, change the details, personalize it, make it yours. But giving people that jumping off point helps with that writer's block of like, I don't know what to say. Whereas if you see something

that's already written, you can just like make it your own. Also be professional, but be to the point. Do not send a 17 page letter. I guarantee you that is not going to get read in its entirety and be acted upon. Send a short, professional, polite, to-the-point letter and get your friends to do the same. And then when I say seek media attention, the more attention you can bring to your issue, the greater chance you have of getting it acted upon. So going back to the parks situation, if you send an email to a news producer at a local TV station and say, hey, you might want to check out the park on Main Street because it is a hot mess. Check it out. See all the broken glass. See the fact that the lawn hasn't been cut.

Local news is always looking for stories to do. They're always looking for like local residents are concerned about the park on Main Street. Those kinds of stories they're interested in. And that kind of media attention also shines a light on the issue, spotlights the issue, so it is more likely to be resolved. If enough city council members, county council members pick up the phone and call the parks department and they're like, what in the Sam Hills going on at your parks? Why aren't you cutting the grass? Stuff is way more likely to happen. So to reiterate, be the squeaky wheel, send the emails, make the phone calls, get your friends to do it too, attend the city council meetings,

consider running for office, and then get media attention for your issues. All of those things done together will have a very significant impact on your local government. One of those things is good, but all of them are better. So best of luck to you, my friend. Thank you for caring about your local government. Your local government is incredibly important. All right, that is it today. I hope you enjoyed this episode. And again, if you want to leave me a voice memo so I can answer your question in a future podcast, go to my website, SharonMcMahon.com slash podcasts, scroll to the bottom. You'll see an orange button that lets you leave me a voice memo. Thank you so much for

listening to the Sharon Says So podcast. I am truly grateful for you. And I'm wondering if you could do me a quick favor. Would you be willing to follow or subscribe to this podcast or maybe leave me a rating or a review? Or if you're feeling extra generous, would you share this episode on your Instagram stories or with a friend? All of those things help podcasters out so much. I cannot wait to have another mind-blown moment with you next episode. Thanks again for listening to the Sharon Says So podcast.