Petition for State of Texas to withdraw from the United States of America

A petition for the withdrawal of the State of Texas has been posted on the website petitions.whitehouse.gov, called We the People. Petitioners asked to "Peacefully grant the State of Texas to withdraw from the United States of America and create its own NEW government".

The petition seems to have been created on 09 November 2012, under issues of Civil Rights and Liberties, Economy, Government Reform, by a Micah H of Arlington, TX. It has successfully reached both thresholds, and has secured 80,661 as of Tuesday afternoon, 13 November 2012.

The petition needed 25,000 signatures within a month which is considered enough support at which point, White House staff will review it, ensure it's sent to the appropriate policy experts, and issue an official response.

According to the Dallas Morning News, Catherine Frazier, press secretary for Governor Rick Perry, sent an email where the Governor distanced himself from the petition.

"Gov. Perry believes in the greatness of our Union and nothing should be done to change it. But he also shares the frustrations many Americans have with our federal government. Now more than ever our country needs strong leadership from states like Texas, that are making tough decisions to live within their means, keep taxes low..."

Texas has not been the only state to seek secession, after the recent presidential election results, but has garnered the most votes within the relative short timespan.

Other states apparently seeking secession/withdrawl from the United States of America, and have drawn large numbers of petitions include Louisiana, Florida, Georgia, and Alabama.

The right to petition your government is guaranteed by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Throughout our history, Americans have used petitions to organize around issues they care about from ending slavery, to guaranteeing women's right to vote, to the civil rights movement.(petitions.whitehouse.gov)

Anyone 13 or older can create or sign an online petition seeking a federal government action on a range of issues. Then it's up to the petition creator and signers to build support for the petition by gathering more signatures.

As of October 3, 2011, to cross the first threshold and be searchable within WhiteHouse.gov, a petition must reach 150 signatures within 30 days. To cross the second threshold and require a response, a petition must reach 25,000 signatures within 30 days.

In order to create, or sign petitions on We the People, you must create a WhiteHouse.gov account and verify your email address.