Economy

A very good point!

*Oregano

I've thought through this. Would this new country have the resources to defend itself from an attack from the US?

What if this new country joins NATO on its first day of being a country? Would the US be required to defend the new country from itself?

A far more effective solution would be a "soft succession". Pay special attention to the section on economic leverage. What if California joined with New York, Massachusetts, Illinois and any other "blue" states and just stopped paying federal taxes? I can't find it now, but I saw a infographic that the "blue" states are the primary funders of the federal government by a significant amount. Without money from these states, the federal government cannot exist. All of this framework has been reinforced by the judicial branch.

This is already happening. In Minnesota, the DOJ is suing the state. This is a lawsuit to watch. If the legal blog from above is correct, the DOJ lawsuit will fail, just as before:

Federal courts have recently blocked President Donald Trump from interfering with sanctuary city policies; earlier this year, a federal judge stopped Trump from withholding federal funding from cities that refuse to assist with immigration enforcement, including Minneapolis.