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Tag Archives: dc
Mark Chou's Take: What 4/15 Means to DC Residents
Today is April 15. Not only is it my dog Buddy Chou’s birthday, but it is also Tax Day. It’s the day we forfeit our hard earned salaries for the better of our country. In return, we all get representation in the House of Representatives and the Senate. Well, most of us do. Residents of the District of Columbia do not get this right. That’s correct; DCers pay thousands of dollars in taxes each year but still get no representation in Congress. That is literally taxation without representation. TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION. Hold up. Isn’t that what people in the 1700s had a huge problem with? They were paying their government yet did not get a vote in anything or anywhere. So, they fixed it. Yay! However, this concern still lingers in Washington D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, a Democrat from Washington, D.C., has taken it up as her job to get D.C. residents their right to a representative. “Defenders of the Constitution” believe residents of D.C. do not deserve this right because seats in Congress are reserved to representatives of states. Technically, Washington, D.C. is not a state. Is that a fair argument? I’m not buying it. They are paying taxes. They live in America. They deserve the right to have representation in Congress. Are residents of D.C. any less Americans than, say, Californians? Definitely not. (more…)
Posted in Blog, College Democrats, Mark Chou's Take
Tagged Chou, Congress, constitution, dc, defenders of constitution, delegate, district of columbia, hatch, holmes norton, house of representatives, Joe, joe sandman, lieberman, Mark, Mark Chou, mark chou blog, Mark Chou's Take, markchou, markchoublog, markchoublog.blogspot.com, representation, representative, Republicans, residents, Senate, tax day, taxation, Taxation Without Representation, utah, Washington
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One Step Closer to Democracy
The Senate approved the District of Columbia House Voting Rights Act (S. 160) last Thursday, by a 61-37 vote. If the bill becomes law, it will grant the District of Columbia one voting representative in the House of Representatives and one additional representative to Utah. The bill is a political compromise that balances the heavily-Democratic District’s seat and with one for Republican-leaning Utah. Currently, the District of Columbia – the so-called “capital of the free world” – is denied representation in Congress.
Unfortunately, an amendment proposed by Senator John Ensign (R-NV) to weaken the District’s gun control laws was added to the legislation on the Senate floor. The amendment would legalize semi-automatic weapons and high-powered assault rifles in the city. It would overturn the District’s current gun control laws, which were enacted by the city’s democratically-elected legislature and enjoy widespread support in the city. Supporters of the amendment argue that citizens need guns to defend themselves in their homes. Semi-automatic weapons and high-capacity magazines, however, are certainly not necessary for self-protection and legalizing them will only undercut law enforcement efforts in the District and potentially endanger the city’s residents, as well as its brave and dedicated police officers.
Thursday’s Senate vote was a significant step towards granting American citizens living in the District of Columbia the same democratic rights as citizens living elsewhere in the country. The House will likely take up consideration of its version of the bill sometime this week. It will probably pass the bill without the gun amendment, leaving open the possibility that the gun amendment could be dropped in conference committee. President Obama is expected to sign the legislation.
Posted in Blog, Congress, Democratic Party, Domestic Affairs, International, Rants, Uncategorized
Tagged Congress, dc, democracy, democrats, Eleanor Holmes Norton, Gun Control, House, Inside the Beltway, lieberman, Nevada, orrin hatch, Reckless Republicans, Republicans, Senate, Senator Ensign, Taxation Without Representation, utah, washington dc
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Inside the Beltway
The District of Columbia’s nearly-600,000 residents pay federal taxes like all other Americans (except perhaps the few politicians who forget) and serve on federal juries and in the nation’s armed forces. Despite fulfilling these responsibilities of citizenship, however, citizens living in the so-called “capital of the free world” are denied voting representation in Congress.
Congress is currently considering the District of Columbia House Voting Rights Act (in the House as H.R. 157 and the Senate as S. 160), which would help remedy the situation by granting the District of Columbia voting representation in the House of Representatives. The bill is a political compromise that aims to attract Republican support to granting the heavily-Democratic District of Columbia a seat in the House. The bill would expand the House to 437 members, with one of the new seats going to the District of Columbia and the other going to heavily-Republican Utah, which is currently next in line to receive an additional House seat.
An effort to pass a similar bill failed in the 110th Congress. The bill passed the House, but fell three votes short of overcoming a Republican-led filibuster in the Senate. With expanded Democratic majorities in both houses in the 111th Congress, however, the bill is very likely to pass. It is likely to come to a floor vote in the House sometime this month. It passed the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs today by an 11-1 vote (Senator John McCain cast the single vote against the bill) and will likely come to a vote in the full Senate later this year.
Watch Colbert’s take on DC voting rights.
UPDATE: According to the AP, a preliminary Senate vote has been scheduled for February 24.
FLOTUS
Who could possibly be a better role model than Michelle Obama?
To prove this point, our first lady made a trip to Mary’s Center in DC; a health center that serves a predominantly Hispanic community. She visited the center to talk to children at an after-school program there.
Her message to them? “Always think about where you came from and what you’re going to give back.â€
The next stop for Michelle? The Cover of Vogue Magazine. That’s right. Michelle will be featured on Vogue’s March edition!
I know I’ll be picking up a copy…
Mark Chou's Take: It's Not THAT Cold
When I was in Washington D.C. for the inauguration last week, everyone was talking about how cold it was going to be. The news was saying that the temperatures would be below “freezing” and a “snow storm” would be on its way. Both of these were true, but still don’t say much. Yes, it was “freezing” outside. However, freezing only means that it is 32 degrees Fahrenheit. Also, D.C. snow is nothing compared to anything we get in the Midwest. President Obama pointed out that his daughters’ schools were closed today due to the “ice.” Without a doubt, classes would have been held in Chicago. Watch Obama’s comment here. My point: suck it up, D.C.
Posted in Barack Obama, Blog, Mark Chou's Take
Tagged Chicago, dc, Mark Chou, Mark Chou's Take, obama, Washington, washington dc
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Mark Chou's Take: Live from DC!
We all made it! I pulled an all-nighter due to my jitters and left for D.C. early this morning. I shared a good conversation with my taxi driver; Yellow Cab drivers are always great small talkers. Anyway, I sat next to a guy on the plane that treated me as an airplane virgin; he constantly reminded me that I couldn’t use my iPhone during takeoff and landing and that my luggage had to be stowed entirely under the seat. After that leg of my journey, I quickly rushed to my transfer flight. I shared a nice sprint with a woman who is also going to the inauguration. In the end, we both got to the plane before take-off, and now we are both here in Washington D.C. YAY! (more…)
Posted in Barack Obama, Blog, Mark Chou's Take
Tagged Barack Obama, dc, inauguration, Mark Chou, Mark Chou's Take, obama, washington dc
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