U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ-09) today supported landmark legislation to establish the state of Washington, Douglass Commonwealth as the 51st member of the United States of America, which passed the House of Representatives 216-208.
“Residents of our nation’s capital pay their taxes like you and me. In fact, D.C. residents pay more federal taxes than the residents of 22 states,” said Rep. Pascrell, a cosponsor of the watershed H.R. 51, the Washington, D.C. Admission Act. “But unlike citizens in every other state, they have no representation in our Congress. Today the House voted to overturn the disenfranchisement of American citizens by ending taxation without representation.
“Despite the half-truths and outright lies, D.C. Statehood is a matter of justice, equality, and democracy. The failure to provide representation has been a sinister way to steal political power from minority communities. That many Republican objections to statehood are slathered in barely-veiled racism bears this out. But denial of true representation in Congress is nothing less than a denial of a voice. It’s been 62 years since Alaska and Hawaii joined our Union – like today, via direct legislation and not a constitutional amendment. With the House’s vote, the District of Columbia will join them. ‘51st State’ has a nice ring to it.”
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