quote: A bill giving the District a full voting member of the House of Representatives moved a step closer to consideration by Congress yesterday as Utah approved a redistricting plan for the seat that it also would receive in the legislation.
Advocates of the bill now hope it will be rushed through Congress during the end of its lame-duck session, which gets underway today. Congressional aides have said that is highly unlikely because of the limited time left. Nonetheless, supporters of the bill saw a glimmer of hope, noting that the Utah vote resolved objections that had impeded the legislation in recent months from moving to a vote in the House.
"There's nothing standing in the way now," said Rep. Thomas M. Davis III (R-Va.), who crafted the bill. "It's time justice is done, and the District of Columbia gets a vote in Congress. Nobody has gotten this far before. I call on Congress and the White House to finish the job while we have the momentum going."
Given that the Constitution makes it clear that Representatives must be chosen by states, I don't see how this can stand up against a court challenge, but anything that gets DC closer to federal voting rights is fine by me. Hopefully it will at least garner more attention for the issue.
Posts: 345 | From: Washington, DC | Registered: Jul 2006
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