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Born & Raised in DC

The Big Chair

When the Senate failed to end the filibuster on the DC Voting Rights Act, there was a lot of talk by opponents about the Constitution.  But behind the rhetoric there is a lot of ignorance about the District - even with Senators who live and work in DC.

One myth is that DC is full of transients, who come here to work in politics for a few years and then leave.  Marc Fisher, in the WaPo, has some stats disputing that myth.  And one of his readers succintly put down this notion:

I think the problem is as follows:

1) There is a certain subpopulation in D.C. that is from another area and is here specifically to represent that area
2) They are very visible to the media
3) They all complain bitterly about the city

This creates a distorting effect.

And here's Fisher's list of cities and % of people who were born in the city and still live there:  -- read more --

Cincinnati 75 percent
St. Louis 71
New York City 59
Chicago 58
Dallas 53
Charlotte 49
Boston 48
Los Angeles 42
WASHINGTON 41
San Diego 41
San Francisco 35
Seattle 36
Virginia Beach 36
Miami 29
Las Vegas 21

Bottom line: The District can't quite bill itself as a homegrown hometown Midwestern style, but it's no Sunbelt amalgam of outsiders either.

Poll
Show You're From DC. Where is The Big Chair?
NW
SE
NE
SW

Votes: 7
Results : Vote Link : Polls


Tags: DC, voting rights, Senate (all tags)


Display:

DC votes Democrat

Mr. Davis,

        Do you think that anyone except Democrats and the Common Cause writers like yourself who are Democrats have anything to gain from allowing the District of Columbia to vote. If the District of Colombia was a majority Republicans, would you a Democrat actually be writing an article in support of this? Probably not!  Ive seen Common Cause called Liberal Cause, Democratic Cause, The Cause of the Democrats and other names by people and its all true. Nobody respects you man, your intentions are so obvious bro.  

by Nadersupporter on Mon Oct 08, 2007 at 08:27:55 PM EST


Not a partisan issue

It is true that a representative from the District of Columbia would likely be a Democrat - it just so happens that most of the people in DC - people who lack representation - are Democrats. There are now 435 people in the House and adding an additional member will not alter the balance of power that much. The bill seeks to remedy even this by giving an extra House seat to the state next in line for an extra district - currently Utah.

This is why the DC Vote Act is important. A considerable amount of what happens in DC falls under the oversight of Congress. Delegate Norton cannot vote on the House floor. When it votes to approve DC's budget, DC residents have no one to turn to and no one to speak for them. There are currently 600,000 people one to vote on their behalf in a body that decides things of crucial importance to the city. This ought to offend, not just liberals, but anyone who cherishes democracy and believes in representative government.

by Michael Bohen on Tue Oct 09, 2007 at 09:56:36 PM EST


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