HISTORICAL VANDALISM AS
GROTESQUE AS THOSE COMMITTED BY
JACOBIN MOBS ROAMING OUR
STREETS.
>> JOINING ME NOW IS D.C. MAYOR
MURIEL BOWSER.
MADAM MAYOR, THANK YOU VERY
MUCH.
YOU’RE IN THE DISTRICT BUILDING,
MONITORING THE DEBATE.
HOW ARE YOU FEELING ABOUT IT AS
THIS DEBATE FINALLY TAKES PLACE
FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 1993?
>> ABSOLUTELY.
THANK YOU, ANDREA, FOR COVERING
IT AND FOR SPREADING THE WORD
ACROSS AMERICA ABOUT WHAT WE’RE
FIGHTING FOR.
WE’RE IN A HISTORIC MARCH FOR
STATEHOOD.
WE KNOW THAT THE DISTRICT
BECOMING THE 51st STATE IS THE
ONLY WAY THE 700,000 TAXPAYING
AMERICANS ARE FULLY REPRESENTED
AND BECOME FULL AMERICANS.
AND THAT’S WHY WE ARE FIGHTING
FOR STATEHOOD FOR D.C.
>> HOW FRUSTRATING IS IT THAT
MITCH McCONNELL WON’T EVEN BRING
IT TO THE FLOOR?
>> IT’S VERY FRUSTRATING.
WE’VE ANSWERED ALL OF THE
QUESTIONS THAT HAVE BEEN LOBBED
AGAINST US ABOUT STATEHOOD.
AND NOW ALL THAT IS LEFT IS THAT
THE ISSUE OF WHETHER AMERICANS
SHOULD BE REPRESENTED IN THE
CONGRESS WHO PAY TAXES IS A
PARTISAN ISSUE.
DEMOCRAT VERSUS REPUBLICAN.
BUT THAT’S NOT REALLY THE
QUESTION THAT THE MEMBERS SHOULD
BE ASKING THEMSELVES.
THEY SHOULD BE ASKING THEMSELVES
WHAT IS FAIR AND WHAT REFLECTS
THE PRINCIPLES OF THE AMERICAN
DEMOCRACY.
D.C. RESIDENTS BEING THE ONLY
PEOPLE IN THE FREE WORLD WHOSE
CAPITAL CITY RESIDENTS AREN’T
REPRESENTED IN THE CAPITAL, IS
SIMPLY ANTI-AMERICAN.
>> AND IN FACT IT’S BEEN SINCE
1801, THE LAST TIME D.C.
RESIDENTS WERE ABLE TO VOTE.
YOU’VE BEEN POINTING OUT THAT
D.C. RESIDENTS PAY MORE IN TAXES
PER CAPITA THAN ANYONE ELSE IN
THE COUNTRY.
>> RIGHT.
SOMETIMES PEOPLE ARE CONFUSED
ABOUT WHO WE ARE AND HOW WE
OPERATE IN WASHINGTON, D.C. AND
WHAT THE CONSTITUTION REQUIRES.
THE BILL THAT’S BEFORE THE HOUSE
OF REPRESENTATIVES CONTINUES TO
HAVE A NATION’S CAPITAL, A
FEDERAL ENCLAVE REQUIRED BY THE
CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED
STATES.
BUT THE BALANCE, THE CURRENT
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA WHERE OVER
700,000 PEOPLE LIVE, BECOMES THE
51st STATE.
OUR POPULATION IS ALREADY
GREATER THAN THAT OF TWO STATES.
WE’RE BIGGER THAN WYOMING AND
VERMONT.
AND UNLIKE THE TERRITORIES,
WHICH WE’VE BEEN COMPARED TO
RECENTLY, WE PAY ALL OF THE
FEDERAL TAXES THAT EVERY AMERICAN PAYS IN THE 50 STATES.
AMERICAN PAYS IN THE 50 STATES.
SO WHEN YOU SEE "TAXATION
WITHOUT REPRESENTATION" ON OUR
LICENSE PLATES, WE’RE PAYING
MORE PER CAPITA THAN ANY
JURISDICTION, GIVING MORE TO THE
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT THAN WE GET
BACK, WE’RE LITERALLY BEING
TAXED WITHOUT BEING REPRESENTED.
OUR CONGRESSWOMAN, ELEANOR
HOLMES NORTON, HAS BEEN FIGHTING
THIS 2350I9FIGHT TO GET A VOTE I
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.
CURRENTLY WE DON’T HAVE ANYBODY
SPEAKING FOR US IN THE SENATE.
AND GETTING TWO SENATORS AND
BEING FULLY AUTONOMOUS IS WHAT
STATEHOOD MEANS FOR WASHINGTON,
D.C.
>> WOULD LAND BE TAKEN FROM THE
NEIGHBORING STATES, FROM
VIRGINIA AND MARYLAND, IN THIS
NEW CONCEPTION OF A 51st STATE?
>> ABSOLUTELY NOT.
SO THE CURRENT DISTRICT OF
COLUMBIA IN THE ADMISSION ACT,
THERE IS A SECTION THAT IS THE
FEDERAL ENCLAVE, THAT INCLUDES
THE WHITE HOUSE, THE CAPITOL,
THE SUPREME COURT, THE NATIONAL
MALL, ALL THE SMITHSONIANS.
THE PEOPLE FROM ACROSS AMERICA
WILL STILL COME TO THEIR NATION’S CAPITAL.
NATION’S CAPITAL.
IN THE BALANCE, AND THE BALANCE
OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
BECOMES THE 51st STATE.
>> DO YOU THINK THERE IS A
RACIAL REASON FOR THIS, FOR THE
DISTRICT BEING WITHOUT A VOTE?
>> WELL, WE KNOW THE EARLIEST
DISCUSSIONS AMONG THE FRAMERS IN
THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA RELATED
TO SLAVERY.
AND WE KNOW THAT RACE HAS
ACCOMPANIED THIS DISCUSSION
THROUGHOUT.
EVERYBODY KNOWS THAT WE ARE
PROUD OF OUR RICH, DIVERSE
HISTORY IN THE DISTRICT OF
COLUMBIA.
AFRICAN-AMERICANS, PEOPLE OF
COLOR, AND PEOPLE OF ALL
BACKGROUNDS CALL D.C. HOME.
AND WE SHOULD NOT -- PEOPLE
SHOULD NOT LOOK TO US AND SAY
THAT WE’RE TOO URBAN, WE’RE TOO
BLACK, WE’RE TOO LIBERAL.
AND THAT MAKES US DIFFERENT FROM
THE PEOPLE OF THE OTHER AMERICAN
STATES, AND WE HAVE TO JUSTIFY
OUR AMERICAN CITIZENSHIP AND
REPRESENTATION.
THAT HASN’T BEEN THE CASE FOR
ANY STATE BEING ADDED TO THE
UNION AND IT SHOULDN’T BE THE
CASE FOR US.
>> THIS CERTAINLY CAME TO THE
FOREWHEN DISTRICT RESIDENTS DID
NOT GET THEIR SHARE, THEIR FULL
SHARE OF THE STIMULUS CHECKS,
THEY WERE TREATED AS A TERRITORY
AND GOT HALF AS MUCH.
BUT IT REALLY CAME TO LIGHT
THREE WEEKS AGO, A LITTLE MORE
THAN THREE WEEKS AGO, WHEN YOU
DID NOT HAVE THE POWER TO
CONTROL THE NATIONAL GUARD, TO
PREVENT THE FEDERAL TROOPS FROM
CLEARING PEACEFUL PROTESTERS
FROM IN FRONT OF THE WHITE
HOUSE, SO THE PRESIDENT COULD
HAVE A PHOTO OPPORTUNITY.
AND IT CAME TO LIGHT THAT YOU,
UNLIKE ANY GOVERNOR IN AMERICA,
AND THE GOVERNORS OF THE
TERRITORIES, CANNOT STOP THE
PRESIDENT FROM FEDERALIZING
TROOPS.
THE 82nd AIRBORNE WERE OUTSIDE
DISTRICT BORDERS IN CASE THEY
WERE NEEDED AND THE NATIONAL
GUARD TROOPS ARRAYED THEMSELVES
IN FRONT OF THE LINCOLN
MEMORIAL.
>> I THINK THIS IS A REAL
EDUCATION FOR EVERYONE IN
AMERICA, THAT WE NEVER THOUGHT
WE WOULD SEE THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT MOVE IN THAT WAY
AGAINST AMERICAN CITIZENS.
MANY CONSERVATIVES WILL ARGUE
THAT D.C. CAN’T BE A STATE
BECAUSE THE STATE WOULD HAVE TOO
MUCH POWER OVER THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT.
BUT WE KNOW HOW DATED THAT
ARGUMENT IS.
THE REAL CONCERN THAT WE SAW WAS
A BIG MASSIVE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
AND ITS ARMY CAN MOVE ON
AMERICAN CITIZENS.
AMERICAN CITIZENS WHO ARE
PEACEFULLY PROTESTING.
AND NO ONE WANTS TO SEE THAT
HAPPEN.
WHAT RESIDENTS ACROSS AMERICA
SHOULD KNOW IS THAT THE FEDERAL
ENCLAVE THAT WILL BE THE SEAT OF
FEDERAL POWER WILL CONTINUE TO
OPERATE UNDER THE JURISDICTION
OF THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED
STATES.
THE PRESIDENT WILL HAVE ACCESS
TO THE SECRET SERVICE, THE
UNITED STATES PARK POLICE, AND
THE CONGRESS TO THE CAPITOL
POLICE.
BUT THE RESIDENTS OF WASHINGTON,
D.C., OUR NEW STATE, WASHINGTON,
D.C., WILL BE FULLY AUTONOMOUS.
WE ALREADY OPERATE LIKE A I DON’
THAT, I OPERATE AS THE GOVERNOR,
WE HAVE A $15 BILLION BUDGET, WE
BALANCE OUR BUDGETS EVERY YEAR,
WE SEE IMPROVEMENTS IN OUR
SCHOOLS, CITY SERVICES, AND OUR
AMENITIES.
SO WE KNOW WHAT WE’RE DOING TO
MANAGE OUR CITY.
OUR RESIDENTS ELECT PEOPLE TO