Four Senators Introduce Companion to Norton’s D.C. Statehood Bill Today
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) met one of her most important goals of the 112th Congress with the introduction of D.C. statehood legislation, the New Columbia Admission Act, in the Senate today. The Senate bill is the companion to Norton's New Columbia Admission Act (H.R. 265). The bill was introduced by Senator Joseph Lieberman (I-CT), chair of the committee with jurisdiction over the District of Columbia, and was co-sponsored by Senators Richard Durbin (D-IL), Patty Murray (D-WA) and Barbara Boxer (D-CA). Norton said that she was grateful to see these first four sponsors in particular, because they have "long records of support for equal treatment and full democracy for the residents of the District of Columbia." She said that the city owed very special thanks to Senator Lieberman, who, for years, has been the lead Senate sponsor of Norton's D.C. democracy bills. Norton said, "Senator Joe Lieberman has been especially devoted to the District's welfare, and his leadership has been unstinting in the city's many quests for greater democracy." Senators Lieberman, Murray and Boxer sponsored the New Columbia Admission Act, and then-Representative Durbin voted for it, in the 103rd Congress, when Norton got the first and only House vote and a Senate hearing on D.C. statehood.
The Congresswoman said that the leadership of the four Senate sponsors was "in keeping with their strong records as supporters of democracy worldwide. Their insistence that democratic principles should also apply to the nation's capital is particularly welcome, but no surprise in light of their devotion to spreading democracy at home as well as abroad." She said that the four senators stood out today when the composition of the Senate and House have changed dramatically from her first term in Congress, when Democrats had overwhelming control of both houses and there were significantly more progressive Democrats in both houses.
The Congresswoman said that she was encouraged that members of the Senate introduced the statehood bill during the 112th Congress and were undaunted by the barriers that are usually cited. "Statehood is what D.C. residents deserve and are entitled to as American citizens," Norton said. "We will fight until we get the full package that comes with American citizenship to match the full freight in responsibilities we have always shouldered, from full federal taxes without full Congressional representation, to service in every war the nation has fought."
At the beginning of the 112th Congress, Norton introduced her New Columbia Admission Act in the House. Considering Republican control of the House, she has also pushed for budget autonomy, a major component of statehood, with bipartisan support, including from House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA), Representative Darrell Issa (R-CA), who leads the committee with jurisdiction over D.C., and Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell (R).
Published: December 19, 2012