Johnson Proposal Combines DC Suburbs with Maryland
Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Representative Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) introduced legislation that would revert the majority of Washington, D.C., suburbs to the state of Maryland. The National Capitol Service Area, consisting solely of the National Mall and federal buildings would remain the District of Columbia.
“The Founders never intended statehood for our nation’s capital,” said Johnson. “Rather than create a new state out of D.C., it makes more sense to return suburban areas back to the original state that possessed them, Maryland. As the push for D.C. statehood continues, Congress should consider alternatives that not only make sense for the residents of D.C. but also for the nation as a whole.”
In 1847, thirty-one miles were returned to the state of Virginia. Currently, the District of Columbia does not have voting representation in Congress, however, the district receives three electoral votes in the presidential election. Johnson also introduced a resolution to repeal the 23rd Amendment which provides electoral votes to the District of Columbia. If residential areas of Washington were returned to the state of Maryland, residents would have full representation in Congress, in addition to representation through the Electoral College.
A bill to give statehood to Washington, D.C., passed the U.S. House on June 26, 2020. This bill has not been considered by the U.S. Senate.
###
DC Statehoood by Pat Powers on Scribd
23rd Amendment by Pat Powers on Scribd
Except, they would be missing their own potential US Senators.
Yeah, I’m sure progressives would love to give the hyper-liberal DC folks two senators to tip the scales towards the left; those of us on the right, not so much.
South Dakotan problems?
America problems. South Dakota is still part of America, right?
Good plan.
Though doomed to fail, this is a brainy bill. Certain folks stomp about in high dudgeon, mugging for the cameras, ostensibly furious that DC suburbs lack representation. Reverting those areas to Maryland would solve the problem lickety-split. But it won’t please the complainers, because their argument is pretextual. Dusty’s bill exposes the TRUE reason left-wing pols complain: they want DC to become a state, with 2 newly-minted democrat senators. Doing that would shift the upper chamber’s (and the nation’s) balance of power leftward. Democrat partisan are convinced it’s a great idea. Most republicans think it’s a terrible idea. I won’t opine on the proposal’s merits, but let’s be frank: adding 2 senators what the dems want. The rest is bologna. Otherwise, dems would rush to support Dusty’s bill, giving DC voters congressional representation and, in one fell swoop, making it easier for Maryland democrats to win elections. Hey, what’s not to like?