WASHINGTON DC, Statehood and You

How will it affect Samuel L Jackson's movies?

The Framers may have been wise to not want any state to have the national capital.

I'd rather see Guam and the Northern Marianas achieve statehood (as a single state), and also have a bit more activity on Wake Island to bridge the gap between them and Hawaii.

Washington D.C. has a population larger than Vermont, New Hampshire and even Montana. Those States all have 2 Senators and a few congressmen. D.C. has no representation at all and the lone congresswoman can't vote. D.C. City government can pass laws to govern the city, but Congress can and does nullify laws they may not favor. They deserve full representation in the House and Senate.

But I think Samuel Jackson will be OK.

I'm not sure, but I'm inclined to be for it. I've not lived there (Arlington, VA when I was 5, but hey..); I've made a week long visit as an adult - we pretty much walked the city - so I have a mild understanding that the place is not all government buildings and monuments and hotels. I figure a some government types like congress folks vote in their home states, but surely a lot of government employees who work there live there along with people who work at universities and in support jobs. They should, to me, be able to vote in their home city and have it count.

They can vote in Federal and City races, but they don't have a representative in the house or Senate and Congress still has the final word on their budget and laws. The most recent interference was when Congress overturned background checks for guns in D.C., and a Congressman from the Eastern Shore blocked the City's decision to offer medical marijuana. I don't use weed, but it's legal in many areas. Think of it this way, would you want a Congressman from Tennessee overturning the laws your State has passed?

Thanks for clarifying. And, yes, I wouldn't like that if I lived there.

Washington D C is a city of politicians. Let them vote on president but not have representation in congress as a 51 state.

The politicians working in the D.C. area, can't vote in DC, they have to vote in the State and or Congressional District they represent. They don't have to be a State, but they need someone to protect them from Congress.

How about protection for the rest of the country?

The rest of the country gets to elect voting members in the House and Senate.

I know. Thats why I say we need protection against the D C politicians.

Great, the States really need to do a much better job of sending the right people to Congress. Every single State better get on the ball, and lazy registered voters need to vote.

So? Your need protection from the politicians you yourself and your neighbors vote for?

Either make DC a state or join it back to the states it was whittled from.

What struck me was how hamstrung the city council is when congress can veto any laws/budget/ initiative.

WE have a similar situation over here with the Speaker of the House. The Speaker is in charge of parliamentary procedure and is elected by the House of Commons. They tend to go for more of a parliamentarian who is not a career politician with an eye on a cabinet position.

Once the speaker is chosen, they effectively become an independent, and the three main parties follow a tradition of not standing against the speaker during the election.

This is the result of May's vote.




http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/politics/constituencies/E14000608

I'm not a D.C. resident, but I've had assignments in D.C. The City maintains a police force that has to help with Federal Government events and protection of Government events. The Feds have a Federal Police, force, but D.C. often is called upon to assist in protection and riot control, demonstrations and many other situations that occur in the Nation"s Capital. I live in Annapolis, but downtown has the Annapolis Police Force, and can also draw on the resources of the County Police and of course the State Police. However residents in Annapolis City can draw up their own laws and budget and it won't be reviewed by a higher power. I get why D.C. residents are angry, the can vote in City elections and National Elections, but their votes as City residents can be reviewed by every member in Congress, and if someone in Arkansas objects to the city's vote, it will be overturned.