Katrina vanden Heuvel: Stand Up for DC's Right to Vote

[marmar]

from The Nation:


BLOG | Posted 07/24/2007 @ 11:16am
Stand Up for DC's Right to Vote


A striking yard sign is springing up on lawns across the nation's capital: a fist grasping a "V" with the words "I Demand The Vote" and "No Taxation Without Representation" written below.

For nearly 600,000 DC residents there is, finally, some light at the end of a long tunnel. A bill which would give the District its first voting Representative--already approved by the House--was approved by the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs in a 9-1 bipartisan vote.

"At every turn over the past four years, people have doubted our ability to move this legislation," said DC Vote Executive Director Ilir Zherka. "But we have both the moral advantage in this debate and the bipartisan support to get the job done. We also now have the momentum we need to get this bill enacted by the full Senate."

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he will bring the bill to the floor when he knows he has the 60 votes necessary to overcome the Filibuster party (once known as Republicans). According to DC Vote, the 60 votes are within reach – currently, 55 Senators have indicated they will vote for cloture.

Today, DC Vote and its coalition partners are conducting a National Call-in Day to make a final push before the August recess. Between 9:00 – 6:00, people can call toll free at 1.866.346.3008 for some brief information about the importance of the bill and then be patched through to their Senators. .......(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.thenation.com/blogs/edcut?bid=7&pid=217083