“Generally speaking, we have made great progress in becoming an independent nation, an ‘island nation’ if you will, and I think we want to continue down that path so that if the rest of the country falls apart, Texas can operate as a stand-alone entity with energy, food, water and roads as if we were a closed-loop system,”

We are not talking about pushing for Texas secession. We are just talking about being prepared for anything that might happen if the very volatile and unstable federal government falls apart. This means being prepared for even the possibility of Texas secession, independence, surviving on our own, etc.

I am not advocating for Texas to become enemies with America or turn our backs on America, and neither is Smitherman, but there is a very real possibility that the U.S. will fall apart and crumble over things like MASSIVE debt. What will we do if the U.S. falls apart? Do we have a plan for Texans to survive on our own? Are we capable of surviving on our own? The State of Texas should not wait until the U.S. fails to simply be prepared and be capable of surviving IF the U.S. fails.