The US capital district of Columbia (DC) is to become the 51st state in the United States. The US House of Representatives adopted a corresponding initiative on Friday afternoon (local time) in Washington. The bill was adopted by the democratic majority in the larger chamber of parliament with 232 to 180 votes. However, it is likely to fail in the Republican-controlled Senate.
The District of Columbia was created from parts of the states of Virginia and Maryland after the founding of the United States and is under direct federal administration. The residents of the US capital are allowed to have a say in presidential elections, but have no representation in the two chambers of the US Parliament.
According to the will of the House of Representatives, this is about to change and Washington DC will become the 51st state in the United States under the name “Washington, Douglass Commonwealth” (Washington State, Douglass). It is said to be named after US President George Washington and the first African-American leader, Frederick Douglass. The federal administration buildings such as the White House or the Congress, but also the National Mall with its federal museums and monuments, remained as an enclave under direct federal administration.
The last expansion of the United States took place in 1959, when Hawaii and Alaska became states. For decades, the Spanish-speaking US suburb of Puerto Rico has grappled with the question of whether it should become the 51st state in the United States. There is no dilemma in Washington DC. The Democratic stronghold, which is mostly populated by African Americans, has been trying to become a part of the United States for four decades. The capital city district relies on the battle cry of Britain’s independence movement, “No Taxation without Representation”.
The admission of Washington DC as a state could have a decisive impact on the majority situation in the Senate, where each state is represented by two senators. The Republicans of US President Donald Trump currently have 53 of the 100 senators behind them. The two potential Washington DC senators are likely to be Democrats.
Accordingly, the Republicans voted unanimously on Friday against Washington DC, and there shouldn’t even be a vote in the Senate. US President Trump has also spoken out against it.
Washington DC is currently represented by only one observer in the US House of Representatives. “Congress has two options: Either it continues its undemocratic and autocratic power over 705,000 citizens who live in the capital of our country … or it can live up to the promises and ideals of its country,” said Eleanor Holmes Norton before the vote.
The corona crisis has fueled new displeasure with the district’s status because it has only received $ 500 million in federal aid, while $ 50 billion has been transferred to each of the 50 states. US President Trump’s decision to send the National Guard onto the streets of Washington during Mayor Muriel Bowser’s anti-racism protests also caused trouble.
Those: Apa / Ag.
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