Mayor-elect Fenty: The District Deserves A Vote

[G.A.C.O.L.B.]

I think it's somewhat ridiculous that they don't have a vote but I'm interested in seeing what you all think about it.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...401227_pf.html

The District Deserves A Vote

By Adrian Fenty
Wednesday, November 15, 2006; A21



Last Tuesday Americans across the country flooded their polling places and voted for far-reaching change in our national legislature. Whether it was the war in Iraq or such issues as national security, education, health care and the environment, Americans sent a clear message with their votes that it's time for change.

But the nearly 600,000 Americans living in the District of Columbia were forced to sit on the sidelines and watch as the rest of the nation elected our new Congress. With no voting member of Congress to elect, Washingtonians were again denied participation in American democracy.

As the newly elected mayor of Washington, D.C., I'm concerned about the important issues facing the people of the District. I'm concerned about the families unable to afford health care or housing. I'm concerned about the parents grieving over the loss of daughters and sons in Afghanistan and Iraq. I'm concerned about the children who are being left behind in schools. And I'm outraged that D.C. residents have no vote in the Congress that will decide how to handle these challenges.

cont'd....

[Midnight Judges]

This is a no-brainer.

[Duckus]

I honestly have not heard one logical reason why DC does not have a vote.

[Predicto]

I honestly have not heard one logical reason why DC does not have a vote.

Well there are reasons. Basically, DC is technically not a state and the Constitution provides only for congressional representation for states.

Of course, the Constitution should be amended in this area, but it won't be for one obvious reason.

DC is guaranteed to vote Democratic, so there is no way you will get 3/4ths of the states to agree to the amendment, even if it is the fair thing to do by any objective measures.

[Larry]

Predicto's right (again).

1) DC was never envisioned to be a city, let alone a state. It was designed to be the center of the federal government. (And I really don't think the Founders wanted the government to be electing the government.)

2) I'll also point out, DC used to be part of Maryland. The feds took it to create DC. (They took what is now Arlington, too, but a while back Virginia decided to take it back, and the feds didn't re-take it.) So a case could be made that, if DC should be given a vote, then their votes should be considered part of Maryland's. (I'm not sure Maryland would actually want them, though.)

3) It would take a Constitutional Ammendment. Leaving out the reasons Predicto just pointed out, what do you think are the odds of 67 Senators simultaneously voting to dilute their own power by 2% each?

4) Despite my opinion of the kinds of people that DC elects as their Mayor, (let's just say it's worse than my opinion of Congress), the Mayor probably knows that the proverbial snowball has a better chance than that of DC being granted, in effect, statehood. This statement was a joke, targeted at his own voters. (Many of whom, (based on my opinion of the DC school system and it's students), don't know it's a joke.)

[MurrayH81]

Every educated person knows that you can't vote for Congress people from DC. It's always been that way, and always will be that way.

Every person living there knows this (or has had reasonable opportunity to know this), and it's been that way since every person living there has been alive.

Not one of those people is compelled to live there who wants to vote.

So the simple solution is - if a person who currently lives there wants to vote, they need to move.


/hail

[G.A.C.O.L.B.]

Predicto's right (again).

1) DC was never envisioned to be a city, let alone a state. It was designed to be the center of the federal government. (And I really don't think the Founders wanted the government to be electing the government.)

2) I'll also point out, DC used to be part of Maryland. The feds took it to create DC. (They took what is now Arlington, too, but a while back Virginia decided to take it back, and the feds didn't re-take it.) So a case could be made that, if DC should be given a vote, then their votes should be considered part of Maryland's. (I'm not sure Maryland would actually want them, though.)

3) It would take a Constitutional Ammendment. Leaving out the reasons Predicto just pointed out, what do you think are the odds of 67 Senators simultaneously voting to dilute their own power by 2% each?

4) Despite my opinion of the kinds of people that DC elects as their Mayor, (let's just say it's worse than my opinion of Congress), the Mayor probably knows that the proverbial snowball has a better chance than that of DC being granted, in effect, statehood. This statement was a joke, targeted at his own voters. (Many of whom, (based on my opinion of the DC school system and it's students), don't know it's a joke.)

All they are asking for is a vote in the House of Representatives. Norton-Holmes is already there she is just a non-voting member. They aren't asking for senators. Secondly, Mayor Williams was a good mayor and I really like Fenty so yeah.

[Duckus]

I think everyone understands why technically the people in DC are restricted from having representation. That part is from 5th grade civics class. I think most people are more confused why half a million people living in one of the most expensive cities in America are restricted a basic right of most Americans.

The fact that the people of DC should not have a vote because they might vote for crappy politicians is absurd.

[DarkLadyRaven]

Murray that sucks and you know it.

Just because it was that way in the past does not mean it always will

Tom Davis, the best republican since McCain, has a bill in the Senate that would give DC a vote (but it would also add a district in deep Red Utah, why not pimp this bill)

[G.A.C.O.L.B.]

Every educated person knows that you can't vote for Congress people from DC. It's always been that way, and always will be that way.

Every person living there knows this (or has had reasonable opportunity to know this), and it's been that way since every person living there has been alive.

Not one of those people is compelled to live there who wants to vote.

So the simple solution is - if a person who currently lives there wants to vote, they need to move.


/hail

In the 1770's every educated person knew that America was a colony of England. It had always been that way and would always be that way.

Every living person knew this (or had reasonable opportunity to know this), and it had been that way since every person living there had been alive.

Not one of those people was compelled to live there who wanted independence from England.

So the simple solution was - if a person who currently lives there wants independence, they need to move.

and repeat numerous times throughout history.

[Duckus]

Every educated person knows that you can't vote for Congress people from DC. It's always been that way, and always will be that way.

Every person living there knows this (or has had reasonable opportunity to know this), and it's been that way since every person living there has been alive.

Not one of those people is compelled to live there who wants to vote.

So the simple solution is - if a person who currently lives there wants to vote, they need to move.


/hail

That’s a great view to take on issues. “It has always been that way so people should just accept it and not care.” If the people of DC who have been living here for years or even generation are not happy about the current system then they should NOT move away, like you have claimed, but demand the rights that they think they deserve. They might not get it and it might not change, but at least they stood up and said that it was wrong.

[Larry]

Now, if somebody were to propose, say, a Constitutional Ammendment along the lines of:

All residents of the District of Columbia shall, for the purposes of electing Congressmen, be considered to be residents of Maryland. Their population shall be considered to be residents of Maryland for the purposes of determining Maryland's representation in Congress, and their votes shall be tabulated and considered using the same rules and proceedures as Maryland voters, for the purposes of selecting Congressmen. For the purpose of selecting Senators, their population, and their votes, shall similarly be considered to be part of the population of Maryland.

Then I could see some folks going along with it.

I don't think there's a chance in the world of it ever passing with the kind of support a Constitutional Ammendment needs. (Example: This country couldn't get enough votes to pass a Constitutional Amendment granting equal rights to women. And you think people will vote for DC?!?!), but I'd agree that it would sound fair.

[DCRunner]

I want 2 Senators and the appropriate number of representatives. I don't live down on the Mall. There is NO valid reason anymore to deny citizens in the District their meaningful representation in Congress. None. Period.

[Larry]

I want 2 Senators and the appropriate number of representatives. I don't live down on the Mall. There is NO valid reason anymore to deny citizens in the District their meaningful representation in Congress. None. Period.

But "their meaningfull representation" is "they used to be part of Maryland".

You're not asking for "meaningfull representation". You're asking for promotion to statehood.

[DarkLadyRaven]

I want 2 Senators and the appropriate number of representatives. I don't live down on the Mall. There is NO valid reason anymore to deny citizens in the District their meaningful representation in Congress. None. Period.

Wyomie (spelling?) has less population than DC. Yet it gets 2 senators and a rep-- that is a shameful scam