I was just gearing up for a solid, text-based argument on why the provision is mandatory rather than permissive . . . when it dawned on me that Washington, D.C., did not become the capital until 1800, following Philadelphia and, before that, New York. So there is at least a historical argument that the national capital can be within a state. But the Residence Act of 1790, http://www.gwu.edu/~ffcp/exhibit/p12/p12_1text.html, which provided for the national capital, distinguished between the temporary and permanent seats of the government, and contemplated that Federal law would supersede state law in the new Federal district once the seat of government moved there permanently. Today, now that the permanent capital has been established, the Constitution explicitly contemplates that “the seat of the government of the United States” will become the national capital “by cession of particular states, and the acceptance of Congress,” and that Congress shall “exercise exclusive legislation in all cases whatsoever” over that capital. Thus, I argue that Omaha can become the new capital only if Nebraska cedes and Congress accepts land for a Federal enclave, over which state law ceases operation–and which ceases to be a part of the ceding state–once the Federal government moves in.
La Paz County, Arizona was broken off from Yuma County on January 1, 1983.
Broomfield County, Colorado, was established pursuant to a statewide referendum in November 1998 amending the Colorado constitution. The new county was organized by legislation effective November 2001. See http://www.broomfieldenterprise.com/broomfield/extra/almanac/timeline.html. Most states can establish a new county by law but Colorado’s process is evidently more cumbersome.
Annoying part of the U.S. version of English: Franklin was most emphatically a “state” – a governmental entity put in place by the citizens of an area to govern themselves. It was never a “state” – i.e., a member of the Union created by 13 such states who contemplated adding to their number out of the additional territory ceded to them in the Peace of Paris and jointly governed by them through that Union.
I’m sure I’m going to kick up a firestorm with this one, but Delaware and Rhode Island: why bother? Why not make Delaware part of Maryland and Rhode Island part of Connecticut? 
Long Island.
It’s heavily Republican in a heavily (though the trend is changing) Democratic state.
In this thread bibliophage researched my population estimate
Let’s see about this.
Suffolk County 1,419,369
Queens County 2,229,379
Kings County 2,465,326
Nassau County 1,334,544
Long Island ca. 7,450,000
Long Island would take 12th place and bump Virginia down. We’d probably be stuck with Senator Shumer but would be rid of Ms. Clinton and Pataki and Bloomberg!
You do not, however, say it in General Questions.
Does there remain a factual question here.
What, I can’t say “Feck Puerto Rico”???
Kidding, kidding.
Sorry Manny and all other GQers. It won’t happen again.
On hindsight, I think it would have gone into IMHO since the factual answer would have been “Yes, sure, there can always be new states per the Constitution; no, we have no idea how soon or who it would be.”
And the “opinions” would still have to be expressed in a civil manner, w/o drive-by rants, hmm?
Alberta could be West Texas.
Canada would settle for nothing less than being a seneschal.
A while back there was a thread that discussed making the states in the Great Lakes a new nation called “BigTenia”, which I prefer instead of “Rust Belt”, than you very much.
The District of Columbia’s representative in Congress may not have the power to vote on the floor of the House, but he/she does have the power to vote in committee, including in the “Committee of the Whole”. If you consider that a bill spends most of its life in committee, that ability is not insubstantial.
Que? No se habal Canuck. “Seneschal”?
I think the 51st state will be Cuba before Puerto Rico(once Castro’s cold dead fingers are pried from power,preferably by death).
Wait… if Castro’s fingers are already dead… how can they be pried from power by death? Oh well, I’ll just go test it out by beating that dead mule that I hid in my neighbor’s car… Funny story that, but I won’t bore you with the details.