The Fascinating Debate About Representation for D.C.

A bill giving D.C. a voting member in the House of Representatives has stalled. Republicans somehow managed to bring the district's gun-control law into the debate, and Democrats apparently got scared. Thus taxation without representation continues.

D.C.'s non-voting congressional delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton is confident that she and House Democratic leaders will find a way to get the voting rights bill passed. The measure would add another seat in the House (in addition to the D.C. seat), which would go to Utah until the districts are reconfigured after the 2010 census.

While reading up on this issue, I found this piece by Rep. Mike Pence, an uber-conservative Republican from Indiana. Pence adeptly explains why giving the nation's capitol a voting congressperson is just, responsible, and constitutionally viable.

Another interesting resource is this list of 10 Myths About the District of Columbia from DC Vote.org.