WASHINGTON – House and Senate Democrats introduced legislation on Wednesday that would make Washington, DC, the 51st state.
The measure was reintroduced into the House by Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, a Democrat who represents the District of Columbia, and his companion was introduced in the Senate by Senator Tom Carper, D-Del. On Tuesday night, Norton said he had more than 200 co-sponsors in the House.
“There has never been a time when the creation of a state for the district was more likely,” Norton said in a statement, adding that the bill was approved by the House last year and now has a “record” of 202 co – sponsors. The bill that accompanies the Senate is also earning co-sponsors, “we are ready to achieve full local electoral representation and self-government for the more than 712,000 residents of the District of Columbia,” she said.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., And Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., Have pledged to take the project to a vote, Norton said. She added that with Democrats in the majority in the House and Senate, and with the support of President Joe Biden, “this is the time when we can finally correct this historic injustice and give DC residents the same rights as other contributing Americans” .
Although the bill may be approved again in the House, which remains under Democratic control, the chances of being passed in the Senate are slim. Democrats control the Senate because, with a 50/50 split, Vice President Kamala Harris can vote for the tiebreaker. But Democrats would need to overcome an obstruction, requiring 60 votes, for the legislation to pass, meaning that they would need at least 10 Republicans to join them. Many Republican lawmakers expressed opposition to the creation of a state for DC because their representation in Congress would almost certainly be Democratic.
Carper, however, said in a statement that the creation of a state in DC is not “a Republican or Democratic issue”.
“It is an American issue because the lack of fair representation given to DC residents is inconsistent with the values on which this country was founded,” he said. “Therefore, it is the responsibility of all of us, who enjoy the right and privilege of full voting and representation rights, to defend the cause of our fellow citizens in the District of Columbia.”
Mayor Muriel Bowser applauded the action on Wednesday.
“Washington generations have been denied the right to participate in our democracy – to have their voices and votes heard in Congress, to help shape the future of our nation and to have a say in Supreme Court justices,” she wrote in Twitter.
