I have an idea. The citizens of Iowa that live in Johnson County (Iowa City/Coralville) are a special kind of Iowan. They are mostly left of center politically much in the way San Francisco is to California.
So I was thinking about a way they could do their thing and the rest of the state could do theirs and I just realized they already have a capitol building (see above).
Why not let Johnson County secede from the state and form a semi-autonomous state? They already have the capitol and infrastructure to self-govern. They are a political demographic unique across the state. This is a win-win!
There are some details to work out. For example, would they have their own National Guard or hire out ours for crowd control and flood relief? When they become a safe-haven for illegal immigrants will we give them safe passage in and out of Johnson County as long as they use the I-80 corridor between Iowa City and Illinois? Will they still use the state pension program or start their own?
I’m sure we can work out these details. The rest of the state would do well to watch their progressive policies and culture and glean from it what is worth gleaning. They could be an example to us all.
Cross-posted from the Goranson Family Blog