two Canada geese in flight

CalMatters: If California split from the US and became a nation, it would be comparable to Canada

Legendary California reporter Dan Walters covers our poll for CalMatters:

The transcontinental sniping raises an old question: Could California sever ties with the United States and once again become an independent country?

The San Diego County-based Independent California Institute thinks so. It cites California’s world-class economy and its status as “an influential and well-known actor on the world stage, particularly in humanity’s collective fight against climate change.”

The institute has released a new poll purporting that more than 60% of Californians agree that they “would be better off California if peacefully seceded from the U.S. at some point in the next 10 years.”

Walters also asks what California would do for a military:

That raises an interesting question about how an independent California would defend itself. Would it, like Canada, depend on its much more powerful neighbor to provide military protection if needed, or would it build a substantial military of its own?

We’ve got answers! Check out The High Price of Fear: California could defend itself for a fraction of the cost.

Finally, who is Dan Walters? Why did we call “legendary”? Learn about his decades-long journalism career from the podcast “What is California?”