THE HOUSE of Representatives voted Friday to make the District of Columbia the nation’s 51st state. It was a signature moment, the first time in history that a chamber of Congress has formally approved statehood for the District. Credit to the 232 Democratic House members who, in a largely party-line vote, recognized and acted on the injustice of more than 705,000 Americans long denied their rights as citizens.
The legislation — which would shrink the seat of the federal government to a two-square-mile enclave and designate the District’s other 66 square miles the State of Washington, Douglass Commonwealth — has no immediate prospects of enactment. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) won’t allow debate on the bill, and the White House vowed to veto it if given the chance. Even if it were enacted, a court challenge on constitutional grounds would be likely.