Cascadia Rises: A Pacific Contingency for Authoritarian Collapse

A GTNM Strategic Forecast on Regional Resilience Amid Federal Breakdown

The United States is unraveling from within.

Federal institutions, once seen as pillars of global democracy, are being eroded by extremist agendas, judicial overreach, and a partisan assault on basic civil liberties. The 2025 Mandate for Leadership, backed by Project 2025, represents a coordinated blueprint to dismantle progressive policy infrastructure and impose a new federal order—hostile to reproductive rights, DEI programs, climate action, and sanctuary protections.

In this context, the idea of Cascadia, a cooperative regional alliance of California, Oregon, and Washington, is no longer speculative. It is a strategic response to an accelerating constitutional crisis.

The Redistricting Flashpoint: Newsom vs. Trump’s Shadow Government

In mid-2025, Texas Republicans, emboldened by Trump-aligned legal networks, launched an aggressive mid-decade redistricting scheme to tilt congressional maps further right. The move—widely condemned as a violation of democratic norms, prompted a retaliatory strategy from California Gov. Gavin Newsom: the Election Rigging Response Act, a mechanism allowing California to override its independent redistricting commission if another state breaks the rules first.

This isn’t just legal brinksmanship, it’s a reflection of collapsing national consensus over how democracy functions.

“If Texas can redraw the map for MAGA, then California has no choice but to redraw the line for democracy.” — Gavin Newsom

Oregon and Washington have echoed the alarm, with both states pledging to maintain protections for immigrants, LGBTQ+ residents, and students, even if federally penalized. The message is clear: The Pacific states will not comply with authoritarianism.

⚖️ A Federal Government in Conflict with Its States

Cascadia’s three core states are now facing open hostility from federal authorities across multiple policy fronts:

• Immigration: Threats to revoke funding for sanctuary jurisdictions.

• Education: Nationwide push to criminalize “woke” curriculum and ban DEI frameworks.

• Healthcare: Federal restrictions on abortion, gender-affirming care, and Medicaid waivers.

• Climate Policy: Federal lawsuits targeting emissions standards and cap-and-trade programs.

In response, state attorneys general from CA, OR, and WA have filed joint amicus briefs and signaled coordinated litigation strategies. But litigation alone is not enough.

Cascadia: A Bioregional Coalition With Strategic Depth

Cascadia is not just a dream of independence or environmental romanticism. It’s a strategic zone:

• $1.16+ Trillion in Annual Tax Revenue

• Population: ~54 million

• Home to 7 of the world’s top 25 tech firms

• Ports controlling 30% of Pacific trade volume

• 100% renewable energy potential within 15 years

If the federal government collapses, falls under authoritarian control, or simply fails to function, Cascadia could become the 4th largest economy in the world, ahead of Germany and the UK.

The GTNM Resilience Doctrine

What does “Resilience” look like?

A regional fallback strategy must include:

1. Economic Independence

• Establish a Pacific Reserve Currency or regional crypto-backed system

• Form trade alliances with Pacific Rim partners: Canada, Japan, South Korea

• Localize supply chains for food, energy, and tech hardware

2. Climate Sovereignty

• Preserve regional cap-and-trade systems blocked by federal law

• Protect wildfire prevention funding and water rights

• Fund municipal desalination and drought-resilient agriculture

3. Healthcare & Social Infrastructure

• Enact CascadiaCare: Universal, single-payer, regionally administered healthcare

• Guarantee reproductive access and gender-affirming care

• Expand mental health and addiction recovery as pillars of public health

4. Defense & Emergency Autonomy

• Establish the Cascadia Defense Force (CDF): non-aggressive, disaster-ready, modeled on Japan and Canada

• Expand cybersecurity to protect grids, hospitals, and civic systems

• Build coast-wide wildfire response fleets, flood barriers, and seismic readiness zones

5. Legal Sovereignty & Governance Continuity

• Create a Regional Emergency Council with legal authority to assume continuity governance if the federal system fails

• Harmonize emergency declarations and sanctuary status protections

• Enshrine constitutional protections for LGBTQ+ rights, abortion access, and civil liberties

Fiscal Proof: The Pacific Fund Model

Cascadia’s Tax Base (2025):

With this revenue, Cascadia could fully fund:

• Universal Healthcare ($300B)

• Public Housing & Homelessness Elimination ($90B)

• Tuition-Free College & Childcare ($100B)

• Climate-Ready Infrastructure ($150B)

• ️ Defense & Emergency Readiness ($62B)

• Food & Water Security Programs ($40B)

Even with full services, the region retains a budget surplus of $285B, which could be used for tax relief, AI research, or sovereign investment funds.

Legal Standing: Sovereignty Without Secession

Cascadia’s plan is built entirely within existing legal frameworks:

• 10th Amendment: Reserves powers not granted to the federal government to the states

• State Constitutions: Each guarantees civil rights that federal mandates now threaten

• Interstate Compacts Clause: Allows formal regional agreements with congressional approval (or de facto coordination without it)

This isn’t rebellion. It’s legal continuity governance, a model to preserve democracy if the federal system collapses.

Cultural Values: Why Cascadia?

Forecast: Scenarios Ahead

GTNM Conclusion

GTNM does not advocate secession.
We advocate preparedness in the face of federal failure.

If the federal government criminalizes progressive governance, if it dismantles civil rights protections, if it refuses to defend democracy, then California, Oregon, and Washington must have a backup plan.

That plan is Cascadia.

Not a breakaway state.
Not a utopia.
A last-resort firewall for freedom.