hot topic: DC voting rights
February 19, 2009 at 9:51 amDC, signs, voting
As a resident of DC, I should probably be following this issue with more interest than I do, but to be honest, I just don’t know what to think. Here’s the deal: DC residents do not have Congressional representation like residents of the 50 states. What we do have is Eleanor Holmes Norton, a delegate to the House of Representatives, but she is not allowed to vote on the House floor since she is not a member of Congress. In the Senate, there are of course 100 members, so obviously there is no representation for DC there either. Since the district is a federal territory, it is not covered by the US Constitution, which grants Congressional representatives only to the states.
The arguments on both sides get pretty intense… We pay taxes like everyone else (except of course Marion Barry . again.) but without equal representation… SO, does the District become a new state, (and where would that 51st star fit on the flag exactly??) Does the Constitution get amended, or over-ridden? Should DC be absorbed back into the state of Maryland? and then there are all the tax issues which I don’t really care to understand.
And while we’re at it, what about Obama and the ‘Taxation Without Representation’ license plates? What are your thoughts on the matter?
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February 20th, 2009 at 7:07 am
That just sounds to weird to be true. But of course I believe you. 455 parks sounds like a lot though
February 20th, 2009 at 10:07 am
When I lived in D.C. years ago, the joke going around re Marion Barry’s campaign slogan was, “just say yo to drugs.” Hard to believe he is still around.
December 31st, 2009 at 5:24 pm
[...] our spanking new 100+ year old new apartment in Dupont Circle – looked into DC voting rights - organized our bookshelf by color (god we are dorks) [...]