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D.C. chases seat in House

A bill passes the House that would give D.C. a full-fledged representative.

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published April 20, 2007

WASHINGTON - The people of the District of Columbia moved a step closer Thursday to gaining voting rights denied to them for more than 200 years.

But the legislation passed by the House on a 241-177 vote faced a veto threat from the White House, which said the bill was unconstitutional.

The bill would increase full House membership from 435 to 437, giving the largely Democratic half-million residents of the district a seat and adding a temporary at-large seat for Republican-leaning Utah. The House has consisted of 435 seats since 1960.

The bill now goes to the Senate, where its fate is uncertain.

Democrats had to pull a nearly identical bill from the floor a month ago after Republicans surprised them by proposing language, with a good chance of passing, that would have lifted the district's ban on semiautomatic weapons and other tough gun restrictions. This time, over strong protests from Republicans, Democrats came prepared with a floor procedure blocking a gun vote.

Opponents of the legislation pointed to Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution, which says members of the House should be chosen "by the people of the several states."

"Judges and legal experts agree that since D.C. is not a state, it cannot elect members of Congress," said Rep. Lamar Smith of Texas, the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee.

Supporters, led by the current D.C. delegate in the House, Eleanor Holmes Norton, say the Constitution grants Congress the authority to give the district full voting rights.

Norton can vote in committee and on some amendments but not on final passage of any bill. Republicans questioned whether the bill would allow the district to keep its delegate, with limited voting rights, along with a new representative with full rights.

Utah, which now has three representatives, narrowly missed out on attaining a new seat after the 2000 census and reapportionment. The House would remain at 437 after the 2010 census, when Utah, because of population growth, is in position to gain a new fourth district.

Fast Facts:

How they voted

Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Palm Harbor: No

Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite, R-Brooksville: No

Rep. Adam Putnam, R-Bartow: No

Rep. C.W. Bill Young, R-Indian Shores: No

Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Sarasota: No

Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Tampa: Yes

Associated Press

[Last modified April 20, 2007, 01:25:44]