(Bloomberg Opinion) We know that we live in weird times. Especially for us foreigners, however, it is almost unfathomable to see images of American demonstrators waving placards in support of “Texit” or a new California republic. When half the developing world is struggling to get to the U.S.
One Saturday in late March, I drove west on a traffic-clogged freeway toward Fort Worth, inching toward state Rep. Craig Goldman’s office. According to the Texas Nationalist Movement, a flag-waving rally was scheduled to take place between 1 and 4 p.m., one of half a dozen around the state where Texans were meant to be fighting for nationhood. Why they wanted to rally outside a state representative’s office on a Saturday, when it would be closed, wasn t clear.
The parking lot was empty at the office complex where Rep. Goldman’s suite is located. After a few minutes, a blue pickup crept into the lot and parked briefly. A sticker on the truck’s back window read “Texas First,” but the driver rolled away, disappearing down the frontage road. Later, a green Jeep rolled up, the word “TEXIT” scrawled in chalk on the rear window. The driver waited a moment and then sped off.