居民告诉福克斯新闻数字频道，成为州会加剧该岛经济困境并加速美国化
2026年8月23日 美国东部时间早上6:00 / 福克斯新闻
作者：汉娜·布伦南 福克斯新闻
观看：波多黎各人对成为美国第51州毫无兴趣
在波多黎各圣胡安接受福克斯新闻数字频道采访的波多黎各人绝大多数反对美国领土成为美国的一个州，理由是经济担忧和殖民主义。（图源：尼古拉斯·巴莱西 福克斯新闻数字频道）
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多名在波多黎各圣胡安接受福克斯新闻数字频道采访的波多黎各人表达了对成为美国第51州的反对，称这会让经济陷入动荡，并剥夺该岛的文化特色。
“我认为不该成为州，”在波多黎各长大、现居康涅狄格州的卡莉告诉福克斯新闻数字频道，“我不希望他们像对待夏威夷那样对待波多黎各。我不想看到税收飙升。这里的民众工资极低，难以维持生计。”
波多黎各自1898年从西班牙手中被美国收购以来一直是美国领土，其州地位问题长期以来在美国政府和波多黎各地方政府之间存在争议。
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2015年7月1日，在波多黎各圣胡安，波多黎各旗帜在国会大厦附近飘扬，当时该岛居民正应对720亿美元的政府债务。波多黎各总督亚历杭德罗·加西亚·帕迪拉近日在演讲中表示，波多黎各人民必须做出牺牲、共同承担责任，帮助该岛摆脱债务困境。（图源：乔·雷德尔/盖蒂图片社）
州地位之争对该岛具有重大经济影响，包括可能改变波多黎各居民和企业的纳税方式。波多黎各目前实行与美国各州不同的联邦税收结构——成为州后，该岛将更全面地纳入联邦税收体系。
“一切都会比现在更贵，而当地人已经苦苦挣扎了很久，”来自圣胡安的亚历杭德拉说道。她补充道：“情况会变得更糟。”
波多黎各总督珍妮弗·冈萨雷斯·科隆是支持州地位的新进步党成员，也是总统唐纳德·特朗普的盟友，她推动波多黎各成为美国第51州。她表示，实现州地位与实现平等息息相关，其所在政党曾多次声称在众多联邦项目中受到不平等待遇。
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2026年8月11日，美国总统唐纳德·特朗普在俄亥俄州克利夫兰霍普金斯国际机场登上空军一号返回华盛顿特区前竖起大拇指。（图源：吉姆·沃森/法新社 盖蒂图片社）
一名接受福克斯新闻数字频道采访的波多黎各居民将特朗普受到的公众审视作为反对成为州的理由之一。尽管波多黎各人是美国公民，但该领土的居民无法在总统大选中投票。
“……尤其是现任总统，引发了大量争议，”一名自称“布”的波多黎各女性说道，“我们绝对不想卷入其中。”
2024年11月举行的一项非约束性公投要求波多黎各选民在州地位、独立或联合独立（留待个别问题谈判）之间做出选择。投票结果显示，59%的投票者支持成为州，29%支持独立，12%支持联合独立。
“我认为我们可以成为独立的国家，”另一名波多黎各居民安杰莉说道，“我认为我们完全有潜力成为一个独立国家，因为我们被殖民了这么多年。”
她继续说道：“我们曾有机会成为一个国家，然后美国，没有恶意，殖民了我们，承诺了一些事情，结果却不了了之。”
另一名居民表示支持波多黎各独立，但称其“尚未准备好”。
“我真心认为波多黎各应该作为一个独立国家跻身世界各国之列，就像美国那样，”来自波多黎各的路易斯说道。
卡维尔告诉民主党人悄悄准备夺权：包括华盛顿特区、波多黎各建州以及扩充最高法院
https://www.foxnews.com/video/6393417521112
路易斯还将波多黎各与联邦政府的经济关系列为他质疑该岛是否准备好独立的原因之一。
“现实情况是，我们一直……被美国政府——也就是联邦政府——按照他们的意愿塑造，”路易斯说，“换句话说，他们一直用大量联邦资金供养我们，人们已经习惯了这种生活。”
他继续说道：“很多人不工作，就是因为他们习惯了领取联邦资金。这太可悲了。”
除了经济方面的担忧，“布”还指出，她担心如果波多黎各成为美国的一个州，会失去自身的文化。
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“波多黎各已经在很大程度上被美国化了，”她说，“如果我们成为一个州，我不希望这种情况继续下去，否则波多黎各将失去其核心与灵魂。”
汉娜是福克斯新闻数字频道政治团队的制作助理。
SEE IT: Puerto Ricans reject 51st state push as residents fear taxes could skyrocket
Residents told Fox News Digital that statehood would worsen the island’s economy and accelerate Americanization
August 23, 2026 6:00am EDT / Fox News
By Hannah Brennan Fox News
WATCH: Puerto Ricans show no interest in becoming America’s 51st state
Puerto Ricans that spoke to Fox News Digital in San Juan, Puerto Rico overwhelmingly were not in favor of the U.S. territory gaining statehood in America, citing economic concerns and colonialism. (Credit: Nicholas Ballasy for Fox News Digital)
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Several Puerto Ricans interviewed by Fox News Digital in San Juan, Puerto Rico voiced opposition to becoming America’s 51st state, arguing that it would send the economy into turmoil and strip the island of its cultural identity.
“I don’t think it should be a state,” Carly, who grew up in Puerto Rico and now lives in Connecticut, told Fox News Digital. “I don’t want them to do PR how they did with Hawaii. I don’t want taxes to spike. People’s wages here are really low to maintain life here.”
Statehood for Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory since the United States acquired it from Spain in 1898, has long been debated among both the U.S. government and Puerto Rico’s local government.
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SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO – JULY 01: The Puerto Rican flag flies near the Capitol building as the island’s residents deal with the government’s $72 billion debt on July 1, 2015 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Governor of Puerto Rico Alejandro GarcÃa Padilla said in a speech recently that the people of Puerto Rico will have to make sacrifices and share the responsibilities to help pull the island out of debt. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
The statehood debate carries significant economic implications for the island, including potential changes to how Puerto Rican residents and businesses are taxed. Puerto Rico operates under a different federal tax structure than the states — statehood would bring the island more fully into the federal tax system.
“Everything would become more expensive than it already is and locals [have] already been struggling for a while now,” Alejandra from San Juan, Puerto Rico, said. She continued, “It would make stuff even worse.”
Puerto Rican Gov. Jenniffer González Colón, a member of the pro-statehood New Progressive Party and ally of President Donald Trump, is an advocate of the push for Puerto Rico to become the 51st state. She argues that achieving statehood goes hand-in-hand with achieving equality, as her party has claimed unequal treatment in numerous federal programs.
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US President Donald Trump gives a thumbs up before boarding Air Force One en route back to Washington, DC, at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport in Cleveland, Ohio on August 11, 2026.(Jim WATSON / AFP via Getty Images)
One Puerto Rican resident who spoke with Fox News Digital cited the public scrutiny of Trump as a reason for not wanting to gain statehood. Although Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens, residents of the territory cannot vote in the general election for president.
“There’s a lot of controversy with the… especially the president right now,” a woman from Puerto Rico who referred to herself as “Boo” said. “We don’t want to be a part of that, for sure.”
A nonbinding referendum on the issue held in November 2024 asked Puerto Rican voters to choose between statehood, independence, or associated independence — which leaves certain issues to be negotiated individually. The vote found that 59% of those voting were in favor of statehood, with 29% favoring independence and 12% for associated independence.
“I believe that we can be our own independent country,” Angelie, another Puerto Rican resident, said. “I think that we have the full potential to become an independent country since we have been colonized for so, so many years.”
She continued, “We had the chance to be a country then the United States, no hate though, colonized us and promised us something and then it was another stuff.”
Another resident expressed his support for Puerto Rico gaining independence, but said it’s “not ready for that.”
“I truly believe that Puerto Rico should be part of the nations around the world as an independent nation like the U.S. is,” Luis from Puerto Rico said.
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https://www.foxnews.com/video/6393417521112
Luis also cited Puerto Rico’s economic relationship with the federal government as one reason he questions whether the island is prepared for independence.
“The reality is that we have been… tailored to the U.S. — not citizens, the U.S. government, federal government — to their liking,” Luis said. “In other words, they have been feeding us with a lot of federal funding and people are used to that.”
He continued, “A lot of people do not work just because they are used to get the federal funds. So that’s a shame.”
In addition to the economic concerns presented, “Boo” pointed to her fear that Puerto Rico would lose its culture if it joined the U.S. as a state.
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“Puerto Rico is already being very Americanized,” she said. “I wouldn’t like that to keep going on if we become a state because it will lose the heart and soul.”
Hannah is a Production Assistant for the Politics team at Fox News Digital.