Wednesday, March 14, 2007

Taxation without Representation

Via WaPo - Bill to Give D.C. Full House Vote Advances
A congressional committee approved a bill yesterday granting the District a full vote in the House of Representatives, giving the measure its first victory in what will probably be weeks of fierce wrangling as it moves through Congress.

[. . .]

Even if it clears the House, though, the bill faces big hurdles. It would have to be approved by the Senate, where so far it has elicited little support from Republicans. It also would have to be signed by President Bush, whose staff has expressed doubts about its constitutionality. If it succeeds in becoming law, it will almost certainly face a court challenge.
I find this whole issue very interesting, but find I have little to actually say about it. The system does seem flawed to have the residence of the nation's capitol not represented in the legislature. And it seems wrong that the issue seems to be tied to the partisan leanings of those residence. I'm sure the only way the issue will ever be resolved, however, is for Maryland to re-annex its part of D.C. like Virginia did.

After first reading this article, probably 2 hours ago, I decided to look up statehood requirements and found myself chasing one rabbit after another. First reading about Hawaiian statehood issues that I was totally unaware of, and then reading about other areas within states (and across state lines) that have sought independent statehood in the past. Interesting stuff, but ultimately nothing ever comes of it.

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