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Democrats push to make D.C. a state is gaining momentum
Buzzfeed ^ | 6/13/19 | Emily Ashcroft

Posted on 06/16/2019 9:40:05 AM PDT by david1292

WASHINGTON — After over 200 years without voting rights, the efforts to allow Washington, DC, to become the 51st state are gaining traction. The House of Representatives has set the first-ever congressional hearing on statehood legislation, and now a majority of the Democrats running for president say they support making DC a state.

The House will hold a hearing July 24 for the Washington, D.C. Admission Act, which would put the nation’s capital on even ground with other states, giving it two voting senators and at least one representative. The bill would end “taxation without representation” in DC — a passive-aggressive slogan used on license plates in Washington to bring attention to the statehood fight.

The act is sponsored by Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, who represents DC’s more than 700,000 residents in Congress and who currently can propose legislation but cannot vote on bills. Her statehood bill has 209 Democratic cosponsors.

Meanwhile, the 51 for 51 campaign is pushing members of Congress and presidential candidates to support making the district a state with 51 votes in the Senate instead of the 60 votes currently required with the filibuster. Stasha Rhodes, campaign manager for 51 for 51, said the campaign sent seven people, six of whom are native to Washington, DC, to Iowa to speak with Democratic presidential candidates about statehood through 51 votes in the Senate. They spoke with seven presidential candidates who said they supported their proposed path to statehood: Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, Andrew Yang, Gov. Steve Bullock, and Reps. Eric Swalwell, Tim Ryan, and John Delaney. The group from 51 for 51 tweeted videos of themselves speaking to the candidates.

(Excerpt) Read more at buzzfeednews.com ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections; US: California; US: District of Columbia; US: Indiana; US: Iowa; US: Maryland; US: Massachusetts; US: Montana; US: Virginia
KEYWORDS: 51for51; andrewyang; buzzfeed; california; districtofcolumbia; dnctalkingpoint; dnctalkingpoints; eleanorhnorton; elizabethwarren; emilyashcroft; ericswalwell; fake; fakenews; fauxahontas; indiana; iowa; johndelaney; maryland; massachusetts; mediawingofthednc; mikepence; montana; ohio; partisanmediashills; petebuttigieg; presstitutes; slingingbull; smearmachine; southbend; stasharhodes; stevebullock; timryan; virginia
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To: david1292

Nope. Denied. It was specifically set up to not be a state nor to belong to any state. Obviously the Donkey’s just want to change things now because they know they’d get 2 more Senators out of the deal. No way.


61 posted on 06/16/2019 11:20:03 AM PDT by FLT-bird
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To: Political Junkie Too

Move the Capital to Omaha, make DC a state, and turn the whole city into a museum.


I like the “move the capital, idea. But instead of making the District as state—it isn’t a state, it’s a single city—retrocede it back to MD. No extra Dem senators, no guaranteed 3 dem electoral votes, maybe one extra democrat rep.


62 posted on 06/16/2019 11:24:56 AM PDT by hanamizu
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To: brianr10

Even better, shut down DC and move 98% of federal functions out to the states.

Maybe keep the White House and President there.

The country would be better off a million fold if we just moved that concentration of corrupt idiots out to their home states and let them meet via Zoom now and then.


63 posted on 06/16/2019 11:28:03 AM PDT by ProtectOurFreedom
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To: david1292

Followed shortly by the States of Atlanta, Miami, Austin, Madison, Memphis, and New Orleans. Blue dots on the Red Sea.


64 posted on 06/16/2019 11:31:13 AM PDT by centurion316
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To: be-baw

In fact the Constitution specifically lays out the politically neutral District of Columbia. It would take an amendment to change that.


65 posted on 06/16/2019 11:46:13 AM PDT by Jimmy Valentine (DemocRATS - when they speak, they lie; when they are silent, they are stealing the American Dream)
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To: hanamizu

Let Maryland have them. Or just give them to the Rat. The’ve gotten them every single election.


66 posted on 06/16/2019 11:56:15 AM PDT by Kozak (DIVERSITY+PROXIMITY=CONFLICT)
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To: All

I could actually be for this:

IF they first move the Federal Government to the exact geographic center of the USA, and take the entire federal apparatus out of D.C.environs. Then the few thousand non-Federal employees who remain can be a state if they want...


67 posted on 06/16/2019 12:24:26 PM PDT by LegendHasIt
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To: brianr10
What’s wrong with DC being absorbed into VA or MD?

Other than the Constitution defining the capital as its own district over which Congress exercises exclusive control?

68 posted on 06/16/2019 12:25:50 PM PDT by DoodleDawg
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To: be-baw
I don’t recall any other state that became one via constitutional amendment. Maybe there’s something in the Constitution specifically about DC of which I’m not aware.

Article I, Section 8: "To exercise exclusive legislation in all cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten miles square) as may, by cession of particular states, and the acceptance of Congress, become the seat of the government of the United States..."

69 posted on 06/16/2019 12:27:58 PM PDT by DoodleDawg
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To: Reily
1. Federal employees can’t vote in federal election.

Why don't you want the military to be able to vote for President?

70 posted on 06/16/2019 12:29:59 PM PDT by DoodleDawg
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To: david1292

Let’s take that idea a bit further. NYC becomes its own state, the rest of the state gives us 2 R Senators. Do this to a number of big cities and the Senate will be R forever.


71 posted on 06/16/2019 12:49:38 PM PDT by slowhandluke (It's hard to be cynical enough in this age.)
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To: DoodleDawg

Personally yes! (Anyway they are voting in state, county & local!)

However everything has trade offs, would you be willing to trade that off to keep the federal worker horde from voting for their self interest?

It used to be the “military professional class” didn’t or rarely voted. It was felt to be involving themselves in politics and unprofessional.

Any it was just idea on how to remove voters from the voting bloc who would just vote for their self interest.

De-certifying federal employee unions & vigorous “unpartisan” enforcing of the Hatch Act might be enough.

“Unpartisan” might be a challenge to do & maintain!


72 posted on 06/16/2019 1:28:40 PM PDT by Reily
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To: david1292

most of the problems with the 2016 election stem from “overly comfortable bureaucrats” who don’t believe they are required to answer to the peasants and peons. Imagine their arrogance combined with the power of a couple of senators?!! Recipe for a civil war

No effin’ way!!


73 posted on 06/16/2019 1:34:04 PM PDT by mo ("If you understand, no explanation is needed; if you don't understand, no explanation is possible")
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To: be-baw

Article I §8: “Congress shall have the power...To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular States, and the Acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Government of the United States”

So, after the cession of DC by Virginia and Maryland, the District became the Seat of Government of the United States. Congress gave Alexandria and Arlington back to Virginia in the 1840s, but they did not try to make Alexandria and Arlington a State.

I think that to dissolve the Seat of Government provided for in the Constitution would require an Amendment.

Congress could (and should) give residential DC back to Maryland.


74 posted on 06/16/2019 1:42:12 PM PDT by Jim Noble (1)
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To: AU72
How was DC created? If by the Constitution then only an amendment can change it's status.

Unfortunately, the Constitution does not COMMAND the creation of a Federal District.

It PERMITS such a creation, and the mechanism is cession by states (MD and VA, in this case), followed by acceptance by Congress.

A better idea would be for Wyoming and Utah to cede a ten mile square to the United States, and have Congress accept it as the New District of Columbia, give the mess on the Potomac back to Maryland, and call it a day.

75 posted on 06/16/2019 1:46:35 PM PDT by Jim Noble (1)
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To: M. Thatcher
Sigh.

+1

Signal to noise ratio is getting really bad.

76 posted on 06/16/2019 1:48:47 PM PDT by Jim Noble (1)
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To: DoodleDawg
Why don't you want the military to be able to vote for President?

Officers did not vote until 1944.

77 posted on 06/16/2019 1:53:21 PM PDT by Jim Noble (1)
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To: Jim Noble

“I think that to dissolve the Seat of Government provided for in the Constitution would require an Amendment.”

A lot of people of responded to my post, but I still don’t see how Article I, §8 prohibits Congress from passing a law to make DC a state without a constitutional amendment.

If Congress has the power “to exercise exclusive legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District” why doesn’t Congress have the power to make it a state without having to pass a Constitutional Amendment?


78 posted on 06/16/2019 2:01:29 PM PDT by be-baw
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To: david1292

DC is the seat of the general government. It is Constitutionally forbidden to be/become a nation-state in itself having it’s own representation within itself acting in it’s own interests and repugnant to it’s purpose as the agent of the several states(the union). It is neutral. All US citizens residing in DC reside there as US Nationals. All businesses operating within DC are vendors... and private ownership of land is forbidden. The general/Federal government resides in DC by authority of the Constitution and has sole administration control... meaning without a constitutional amendment no state/states can interfere with the affairs of/within DC. DC also cannot have a legislature body or governor, or behave as a de-jure nation state. DC is governed only/solely by federal authority and ownership.

Currently DC operates outside Constitutional authority in the way it controls it’s district, laws and neutrality. In short... DC exists as a rogue corrupt unlawful non-neutral unconstitutional de-jure sovereign state serving it’s own self interests and not the interests of the states.

Ignorant idiots living in DC continue tp to think DC is some kind of land mass eligible for statehood and the corrupt Dems/libs also push the lies of statehood for DC in hopes to increase federal representation... all unconditional. But that never stopped a libtard.


79 posted on 06/16/2019 2:01:59 PM PDT by Bellagio
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To: be-baw

All republics have federal districts where state law does not apply. That’s to prevent the inevitable conflict between competing jurisdictions. It means the feds are writing laws that sound like local laws, that only apply to the federal district. Still, it’s necessary to avoid jurisdictional conflict.


80 posted on 06/16/2019 2:14:11 PM PDT by tom h
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