Should Washington Just Hand Over Walla Walla to Oregon?

Southeast Washington knows it's not popular with the west side of the state. The Cascade Curtain acts as a political barrier, and some people take that as a reason to snub the hard working and more rural side of the state. In turn, those of us here in the "east" are seeing red.

But one popular YouTube creator from Oregon wants to suggest that southeast Washington get ditched - and it has nothing to do with politics or the Greater Idaho movement.

It's all about borders and rivers

Geography by Geoff has recently suggested a way to "fix" the United States borders, which he claims are "a mess" and look "fake." This is all due to politics and other reasons that are more human than common sense.

Instead, the YouTuber suggests adapting our boundaries to match natural geography, and when he gets to the West Coast, things get a little odd.

Giving the land south of Snake River to Oregon

The problem with Oregon's border lies in the north-east corner of the state. Oregon's northern border follows the Columbia River - until it just cuts straight across, starting around Port Kelley. So Geoff decides to "add that missing chunk back to Oregon, and call it a day." (If you're wondering why Oregon looks funny in the south of this proposed map - it's because its borders were adjusted to give Nevada adjacent deserts.)

What this proposed border would change

This new border for Oregon would mean giving up a chunk of south-east Washington - everything east of the Columbia and south of the Snake River. That of course includes Walla Walla and Clarkston. Meanwhile, the Idaho border with Washington would remain a straight northern line.

Which is a little odd, when you think about it - if you're going to go to the trouble of using rivers as landmarks, shouldn't you also move Idaho's western border up to the Columbia River? You can't pick and choose here, Geoff, even if that would make life in Tri-Cities very awkward.

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Would this border change make any difference?

Outside of the economy impact of losing Walla Walla to Oregon - probably not. Walla Walla already has its "sister city" across the border (Milton-Freewater), and both are part of the Walla Walla Valley.

Southeast Washington has long learned to let the borders between Oregon, Washington, and Idaho be "soft". Heck, even the west side of the state has its twin pair of Vancouver and Portland (and once, decades ago, a child together named Vanport).

I think Geography by Geoff - based in Portland, Oregon - is just jealous. But what do you think? Watch his full video below and share your thoughts with us on the app!

Keep scrolling to see more about the reasons behind Idaho's border and some beautiful views from the PNW Wine Country.