Senate Bill By Lieberman Would Make 'New Columbia' 51st State...

[bayoubill]

A bill moving the District of Columbia toward statehood has been introduced in the Senate.

On Wednesday, retiring Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), and Sens. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), introduced the bill, which would allow D.C. voters to "endorse" statehood.

The 51st state would be called New Columbia, and would be granted full voting representation in the Senate and in the House of Representatives. The National Mall, the Capitol, federal monuments, and certain other parts of the District occupied by government buildings would not become part of this new state, but would remain under federal control. This federal area -- still called the District of Columbia -- would remain the nation's capital.

D.C. Statehood: Senate Bill By Joe Lieberman Would Make 'New Columbia' 51st State


so the Senate would, of course, automatically get two more permanently-Democrat senatorial seats...

 

[AmyNation]

I thought Puerto Rico would be first.

 

[CrusaderFrank]

Should also split up CA and NY while we're at it

 

[Pogo]

so the Senate would, of course, automatically get two more permanently-Democrat senatorial seats...

- So the United States Citizens who live in D.C. would finally actually have representation.

Oh the horror.

 

[bripat9643]

A bill moving the District of Columbia toward statehood has been introduced in the Senate.

On Wednesday, retiring Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), and Sens. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), introduced the bill, which would allow D.C. voters to "endorse" statehood.

The 51st state would be called New Columbia, and would be granted full voting representation in the Senate and in the House of Representatives. The National Mall, the Capitol, federal monuments, and certain other parts of the District occupied by government buildings would not become part of this new state, but would remain under federal control. This federal area -- still called the District of Columbia -- would remain the nation's capital.

D.C. Statehood: Senate Bill By Joe Lieberman Would Make 'New Columbia' 51st State


so the Senate would, of course, automatically get two more permanently-Democrat senatorial seats...

It doesn't have a chance.

 

[TNHarley]

51st? You mean 58th?

 

[bripat9643]

so the Senate would, of course, automatically get two more permanently-Democrat senatorial seats...

- So the United States Citizens who live in D.C. would finally actually have representation.

Oh the horror.

Why should ticks on the ass of society be able to vote themselves more swag from the public treasury?

 

[Pogo]

so the Senate would, of course, automatically get two more permanently-Democrat senatorial seats...

- So the United States Citizens who live in D.C. would finally actually have representation.

Oh the horror.

Why should ticks on the ass of society be able to vote themselves more swag from the public treasury?

Perhaps you're unclear on the concept of what representative government means.
Perhaps you're unfamiliar with the phrase "taxation without representation" - the most popular license plate in DC.
Perhaps you can explain how US citizens may be selectively deprived of representation based on your political preferences.
Perhaps you're mouthing your words as you're reading this.

 

[Avatar4321]

Nice trick to get themselves more power in the Senate.

 

[bripat9643]

- So the United States Citizens who live in D.C. would finally actually have representation.

Oh the horror.

Why should ticks on the ass of society be able to vote themselves more swag from the public treasury?

Perhaps you're unclear on the concept of what representative government means.

Perhaps you're unclear on the Constitution which specifically exempts Washington D.C from having representation in the House and the Senate. the Founding Fathers did that for a reason: they didn't want a bunch of ticks on the ass of society from having the ability to vote themselves more swag from the public treasury.

Perhaps you're unfamiliar with the phrase "taxation without representation" - the most popular license plate in DC.

Yes, I'm sure every tick sucking off the taxpayers would like to have the ability to vote himself more swag from the public treasury. The Founding Fathers saw it differently.

Perhaps you can explain how US citizens may be selectively deprived of representation based on your political preferences.

I didn't do it. The Founding Fathers did, and I agree with their decision.

Perhaps you're mouthing your words as you're reading this.

Perhaps you have a good view of the inside of your rectum.

 

[bripat9643]

Nice trick to get themselves more power in the Senate.

They would have to get 2/3 of the Senate to approve it and 3/4 of the state legislatures. Given that there are 48 Republicans in the Senate and over 30 state legislatures with Republican majorities, I don't see how it's ever going to happen.

 

[Avatar4321]

Nice trick to get themselves more power in the Senate.

They would have to get 2/3 of the Senate to approve it and 3/4 of the state legislatures. Given that there are 48 Republicans in the Senate and over 30 state legislatures with Republican majorities, I don't see how it's ever going to happen.

Yeah, they didn't have the votes for Obamacare either. It still somehow got passed through deception and legislative gaming.

 

[bayoubill]

a better solution, imho, would be to carve out that portion of D.C. which contains the Capital Building and the central core of federal buildings and monuments, and retain that as the District of Columbia...

and designate the remainder as the twenty-fifth county of the State of Maryland...

 

[Avatar4321]

a better solution, imho, would be to carve out that portion of D.C. which contains the Capital Building and the central core of federal buildings and monuments, and retain that as the District of Columbia...

and designate the remainder as the twenty-fifth county of the State of Maryland...

that wouldn't get them the Senate seats though

 

[Pogo]

a better solution, imho, would be to carve out that portion of D.C. which contains the Capital Building and the central core of federal buildings and monuments, and retain that as the District of Columbia...

and designate the remainder as the twenty-fifth county of the State of Maryland...

... whence it came. That makes perfect sense.

DC has more residents than Wyoming or Vermont, yet those states have three Congresscritters each to represent them. DC: zero.

I'm not too good at math... somebody tell me whether six or zero is a bigger number.

 

[bripat9643]

DC has more residents than Wyoming or Vermont, yet those states have three Congresscritters each to represent them. DC: zero.

I'm not too good at math... somebody tell me whether six or zero is a bigger number.

If the people living in DC want representation, they can move to Maryland or Virginia.

 

[bayoubill]

a better solution, imho, would be to carve out that portion of D.C. which contains the Capital Building and the central core of federal buildings and monuments, and retain that as the District of Columbia...

and designate the remainder as the twenty-fifth county of the State of Maryland...

... whence it came. That makes perfect sense.

DC has more residents than Wyoming or Vermont, yet those states have three Congresscritters each to represent them. DC: zero.

I'm not too good at math... somebody tell me whether six or zero is a bigger number.

There is historical precedent for this idea...

for 'bout 45 years, up until 1846, the area now known as Arlington County, Virginia (as well as the adjacent City of Alexandria, Virginia), was part of the District of Columbia...

it was originally donated, in 1801, by Virginia to the United States government to form part of the new 100-square-mile federal capital district.

In 1846, Congress returned the land donated by Virginia due to issues involving Congressional representation and the abolition of slavery.

Arlington County, Virginia - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[Pogo]

DC has more residents than Wyoming or Vermont, yet those states have three Congresscritters each to represent them. DC: zero.

I'm not too good at math... somebody tell me whether six or zero is a bigger number.

If the people living in DC want representation, they can move to Maryland or Virginia.

So you're going with "unclear on the concept of representative government". Alrighty then.

You can move to Pyonyang by the way, where that kind of disclarity props the state up. Let us know how it worked out. If they let you communicate at all.

 

[Pogo]

Nice trick to get themselves more power in the Senate.

They would have to get 2/3 of the Senate to approve it and 3/4 of the state legislatures. Given that there are 48 Republicans in the Senate and over 30 state legislatures with Republican majorities, I don't see how it's ever going to happen.

The obvious flaw in this simplistic backward reasoning is that the right to representation is not dependent on which party or policy you think a given region is likely to vote for. It's their right as American citizens to be represented, period. That right is not dependent on them saying the right things. Never has been, never will be. Only an idiot would base their vote on whether said citizens were likely or unlikely to support their party.

Unfortunately as noted there are enough idiots in those seats to do just that. But that doesn't make it defensible.

 

[bayoubill]

here's something I did not know prior to researching the topic of this thread:

By 1790, the Southern states had largely repaid their overseas debts from the Revolutionary War. The Northern states had not, and wanted the federal government to take over their outstanding liabilities. Southern Congressmen agreed to the plan in return for establishing the new national capital at their preferred site on the Potomac River.

Washington, D.C. - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


so... the pattern of conservatives honoring their debts and paying their own way, and liberals reneging on their debts and wanting the Federal Government to bail 'em out... was apparently established from the very beginning...?