A state has NO RIGHT to peaceably secede from America.

My initial position is that a state has no right to secede from the Union of the United States. I will begin by defining the key phrases being used. Secede: "to withdraw from an organization (as a religious communion or political party or federation)" In this case, secession is the withdrawal from a federation as a separate and sovereign nation. Right: "Something that is due to a person or governmental body by law, tradition, or nature" My argument shall be centered around three contentions: 1. When the original colonies ratified the Constitution, when the territories agreed to enter the Union, when The Republic of Texas asked to join the Union, and when the kingdom of Hawaii was overthrown by American missionaries, each and everyone of those regions immediately ceded their land, jurisdiction, and status as a separate governing entity to the federal government of the United States (with respect to their limited governing powers as states). Hence, the act of secession is thievery of citizens, land, and jurisdiction from federal government of the U.S. * The 1st reason why ratification and entry to the union gave up the state's right to leave is that we are one unified nation, not a conglomerate of 50 pieces weakly bonded together to form the fuzzy appearance of a country. A state cannot just detach itself from this Union when it disagrees with the decisions of the national government. - Instead, if a state disagrees, our government is structured in such a way that its voice and complaints can force change. - Secession would be unnecessary and would take the Union very lightly. * The federal government BOUGHT the region of the Louisiana purchase. The federal government FOUGHT AND WON the states of Arizona, California, New Mexico, Nevada, and Utah, with parts of Oklahoma, Kansas, Colorado and Wyoming. The federal government signed the agreement that gave us the Oregon territory. It was the federal government who carved out the states. Therefore, It is the federal government, not California, or New Jersey or Minnesota etc., that owns the land. A state cannot take that land, jurisdiction and citizens away from the federal government. Hence it is thievery. 2. If one imagines an environment in which the U.S allowed states to leave peacefully, there are a few issues that he would come across. * One, a state would simply secede whenever it truly, deeply disliked what the federal government was doing, which is a practically inevitable event. The U.S, in effect, would have broken apart within these last 2 centuries. *Two, the federal government, out of concern that the U.S shall be no more, would be very meek about exercising its due authority over the states (granted that authority is constitutional). The federal government would find itself in the same situation that the Articles of Confederation created: very powerless. - After all, the federal government has to be able to protect it's citizens, even if it conflicts with the interests of the states. 3. The spirit of the Constitution and Declaration of Independence do allude to the peoples right to form a revolution and create a new government, should they be unsatisfied with the current administration,BUT Both documents also allude to the necessary provisions under which such a revolution would be morally sanctioned, and also allude to the fact that regardless of reasoning, such an act shall be high treason. I will provide the instances of these allusions after con makes his opening argument. I look forward to an interesting debate. Good Luck.