DC statehood Megathread (pg 33 - Manchin questioning constitutionality)

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

So he is gonna break the fillibuster, good, we need as much wave insurance as we can

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

It won’t matter if the GOP filibusters.

This would mean he would vote the Constitutional option

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

This can still be filibustered, right?

Constitutional option like Judicial Filibuster, this should of been done in 2009, like Tom Udall said, but Obama didn't pull the trigger

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

No current US territories meet the requirements to become a state in my opinion.

PR is too different, a very small percentage of its population can actually speak English. If the average Puerto Rican can’t communicate with the average North Carolinian, then that’s a problem, because citizens of the same country need to be able to communicate. Additionally, Puerto Rico is corrupt, and I feel like they just want the feds to bail them out.

DC is too small territorially. That’s a problem because then it will be compromised of only a single city. That leads to issues with separations of powers- I’m not comfortable with allowing an entire state to be controlled by one city. Not to mention there’s an explicit reason the founders were opposed to this.

All other territories have too small populations, among other issues.

Not to mention that these are being done for political reasons. If they voted differently, we all know most Atlasians would be completely opposed to this.

"People I don't like should be disenfranchised because reasons"

How is PR disenfranchised? They have their own government. They aren’t drafted. They don’t pay federal taxes.

So I assume you are against the idea of the state of Rhode Island because it is basically one city and surrounding suburbs/exurbs?

I also assume you are against Wyoming because it doesn’t have enough people, yes?

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We always get 1 person in these Statehood threads that is a naysayer on Statehood the only way is to have a vote on this

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

The Rs already didn't play by the rules when they blocked Merrick Garland, it's now the D's turn to start stacking Crts. We have the majority and we don't want to lose it again in 2023, to give obstructionists Mcconnell another chance at Majority

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

No, Rubio is open to adding PR, it's clear, that should be the first state up. PR will never join DC as a Union

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

Democrats agree to concede DC statehood and agree to hold a proper referendum in Puerto Rico regarding statehood. In exchange, Wyoming gets stripped of its status as a state and reverts to a federal territory until it's population matches that of Washington DC so both of them can be reintroduced together back into the union.

Furthermore the federal goverment will provide grants to those living in high density communities to move to Wyoming in order to help increase it's population to the point it meets the requirement to become a state.

Constitution says a state regardless of it's population gets 2 Senators

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

Rs blocked Garland, they can't talk about new states being added and stacking the Crts

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

Cali isn't being broken up into 4 states

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

If D's do this, they will have to do it now, 2023 maybe too late, some D's are nervous about 2022 midterms that's why Manchin has come out in favor of this

Of course if Statehood pass this term, 2022 is negated for Rs to take control

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

Republicans only think this is a power move because they don't actually have anything to run on other than exploiting others.

But this is par for the course for the party that thinks their fellow citizens having the right to vote is somehow unfair.

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Exactly, as I said before, they blocked Merrick Garland and they are in the Minority, they can't 🛑 stop it

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

For the last time, Cali isn't gonna be divided up

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

I’m opposed to both DC statehood and PR statehood at the moment, as for all other territories.

Of course you are, territories will give D's more Senators

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

Is there a way DC gets 2 senators without becoming a state?

It would take a constitutional amendment and might even need to get over the entrenched clause. Practically impossible.

I never considered the potential equal suffrage implications, but now that I think about it, yeah, I'm sure some butthurt right-winger would've made a court case about it had the D.C. Voting Rights Amendment ever been ratified.

Each State would still have the same number of Senators, and the provision was clearly intended to prevent the Senate being switched to some other form of apportionment.  I think it would survive any court challenge and if not, Statehood would remain an option.  However, politically, there's zero chance of the Amendment being revived by Congress, let alone ratified by the States. (At most, I could see perhaps Manchin insisting a revival be tried first, with him supporting DC Statehood if not enough Republicans agreed to resend it to the States.)

A fair compromise would have been: The national capital gets 3 electoral votes, 1 Senator and 2 House members. It would save the GOP from 1 Dem Senator and give the capital the representation. I’d be in favor of a bill that said STATEHOOD becomes official on this date if this amendment wasn’t adopted sooner.

Of course none of that will happen but hey

The Constitution is very clear, that regardless of population or size a State gets 2 Senators, not just 1, it's unconstitutional to just give DC only 1 Senator. DC has the same population as WY or AK


This business of DC has to pass due to Constitutional Amendment is inaccurate, every state were territories and we're only admitted due to if it supported slavery or not pending which Prez we had

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

Rs would be opposed to any new Representation of an outside territory, they would get 67 votes.

Again will Ernst, Daines Rick Scott, vote to give new Representation to DC, no

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

JFK III loss can be blamed on lack of canvassing, NE Rs and inc are far more insulated from the natl environment than in other states look at Susan Collins

Once Covid hit, whom Markey was trailing in polls, like Sununu, Collins and Phil Scott, they rebounded in polls. So did Daines against Bullock and Marshall against Bollier. We are seeing the same thing with Charlie Baker in MA


These states have far more females as minority groups than black and brown and voted for inc

A suffolk poll before Covid hit was Markey down by 7 to JFK III, I put the poll in

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

The D's don't have the votes to get DC statehood past the Filibuster, that's why the organizing resolution is taking so long, the Rs know the Ds want to ram thru statehood

I am supportive of Statehood, but it will be Fillibustered

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

The Democrats are f**king clowns. I don’t get why this forum defends them so much.

All the winning probably has something to do with it. Y'know, the House; the presidency & the vice presidency; the Senate; the $1.9T stimulus package polling at +40 approval that wouldn't be possible without the Democratic trifecta; the incoming jobs, infrastructure, & climate change package that wouldn't be possible without the Democratic trifecta; etc.

Stimulus is popular the IRS said due to 55 M people filing taxes so early they due to Seniors filing taxes, and normally don't, they didn't get their 600, tax REFUNDS will be DELAYED

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

If they would of told Seniors or people on Unemployment to file taxes and you will get your refunds faster like the people that normally worked had no problem getting their 600 seniors would of filed taxes, in 2020 instead of 2021. They told unemployed and seniors do nothing you will get your stimulus

But, the 1200 was quickly given to everyone in April, but Rs aren't gonna win in 2022 the seats they thought they would no ways, Trump Insurrectionists hurt Rs chances and Rs are back down to George Floyd numbers with WC females and Minorities

Yes Tim Ryan and Jackson and Fetterman and Kelly and even Sifton with the Biden boom Economy next yr will dissolve Filibuster in 2023, anyways

WC females that voted for Canter and Paul Ryan will vote for our Ds

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

Of course it's a power grab, but it was a power grab for Rs to appoint 3 justices that wasn't his.

They got Kennedy to retire and he wasn't sick

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

The Americans living in DC not getting to have Congressional representation just because Republicans don't want them electing Democrats is the partisan power grab. And yes, it is nice that Jim Crow II will finally end for DC later this year.

Next up are the territories - their Jim Crow will come to an end soon too.

Maybe we're wrong that it's dead, but how are you so confident that it's a given?

Because it's been listed as a major priority by Biden, Pelosi, and Schumer and not a single Democrat has indicated they're opposed.

The process is currently working in the House, and even Merrick Garland was talking about it this week. There's no reason at all to think it's "dead." The numbers are there, it's just not getting all the media attention with the stimulus going on, and that's OK. It will be a state either way by this summer.

I mean, the issue that people are having is that one Senator has spent the last two weeks beating it into everyone's head how much she loves the filibuster.
It's hard to see her backing down after making it her brand.

Over the last 2 months we've documented a number of ways DC can be admitted without abolishing the filibuster. Sinema may be a grandstander, but she's not going to perpetuate Jim Crow, and she may not have even to make that call.

All of which would take 50 affirmative votes, something that there is zero indication exists for this issue.

Who cares with Biden at 52 Percent approvals not 40 percent like Rs want to believe, and think they are gonna win 15-20 House seats and win the Senate, Dems are gonna have at least 52 Senate seats and narrow Majority of the House after 2022 and D's are gonna pass statehood anyways


That's the minimum without a boom Economy next summer

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

The Ds have a 1/3 chance to push the Filibuster this Election cycle but due to the Senate map they have a 2/3 chance to kill Filibuster in 2023, pending we hold the House and we will, Mccarthy isn't Boehner or Ryan

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

DC Statehood is to get back at Rs for the Obstructing of Merrick Garland, we have lived under Conservative Crts since 1970 and under this dark money campaign finance reform

We need a Crt that will do away with Dark money and have comprehensive background checks for all gun owners, 40 yrs we have lived under Conservatives

The Rs launched Gingrich Revolution due to fact they didn't like 40 yrs of D control of Congress

We need free financing of Election like Europe does
I know Del Chi don't see it that way but Ds do

Rs elected Trump and that's why they are in the Minority had they elected Rubio or Ryan or Jeb, they would have ,2T

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

Yeah Manchin and Sinema just said they aren't for lifting of the Filibuster, it's not gonna pass, Mcconnell just said that Rs are gonna block DC Statehood

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

Crossposting from the other thread:

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/26/us/dc-statehood-voting-rights.html

Senate Democrats are getting pressured to add DC statehood into this bill.

And, like, duhhhh, right? Why the hell would you pass a law that provides "support" for DC statehood but doesn't actually enact it? If you're going to go to such lengths to pass voting rights protection, presumably killing or heavily nerfing the filibuster for this bill, why not put everything in there rather than having yet another huge fight? If Manchin, Sinema, and the rest are willing to do what it takes to pass HR1 (and I think they are), they'll also pass DC statehood.

In fact, they should go ahead and pre-admit Puerto Rico, Marianas, and the Virgin Islands as states as well. When Hawaii and Alaska were admitted by Congress, the admission was preconditioned on having a positive statewide referendum, a state constitution transmitted to the president, and a presidential proclamation to declare them to be a state. Thus, use this act to admit 54 states, effective when all of that happens. DC has already had their referendum and will transmit their constitution to Biden immediately. PR has had their referendum, and can transmit their constitution when the territorial government is ready. The other 2 aren't nearly as far along in the process, but this will allow them to become states immediately once they're ready.

Actually, no. While the 2020 Puerto Rican referendum was finally an unambiguous referendum in favor of Statehood in the abstract. There wasn't a referendum on the specific terms of Statehood.  In previous admissions, the order has been adoption of a State Constitution, followed by acceptance thereof by the Territory and the Congress under such terms as set by Congress.  There's no certainty that terms offered by Congress will be acceptable to the people of Puerto Rico. As I've mentioned before, it's uncertain how much of the recent increase in support there in Puerto Rico is based upon the hope it would prove a way out of the Puerto Rican debt crisis, but I see zero chance that a Puerto Rican statehood bill can pass this Congress without the new State assuming all current Commonwealth debt.

Terms or no terms - the people voted for statehood. They didn’t vote for “statehood if the terms are right”. They voted for statehood. And that’s what they should get. Period. Or at minimum have the state be pre-accepted dependent on once the statehood ratified a constitution or whatever they have to do. The point is to pass the congressional/presidential hurdle asap so it’s a done deal when ready.

As for DC. It should’ve been a state by now and the fact it isn’t is repulsive, color me skeptical that will happen but hey. At least it’s going to pass the house which could put the issue in the national spotlight.

I’m curious if PR statehood could be pushed through reconciliation - making PR a state would require residents to pay federal INCOME taxes which would have an impact on the budget... I know it’s a reach but just curious.

If only statehood didn’t require fillibuster proof votes. This and gerrymander prevention are critical but the Democrats seem content on letting the GOP con their way back into power so

LATINOS are already too many Entitlements, look at FL, IL, CA, TX and NY, Section 8 vouchers due to Dreamers are given out to Asian and Latinos over everyone else, and you want to make PR a State, Manchin already said he doesn't support PR Statehood but DC Statehood yes due to proximity to WVA

It's already a Commonwealth