What could be more essential in a democracy than the right to vote? That's why Democrats and Republicans ought to put aside partisan interests to come up with a plan to allow the 600,000 residents of Washington, D.C., to vote for at least one representative in Congress.
Since 1964, D.C. residents have voted for the president and the vice president, but attempts to extend similar representation in Congress have stalled.
Valiant efforts were made in 1978 to pass a constitutional amendment giving D.C. statehood, but it ultimately failed, having won approval from just 16 of the 50 states. At least 38 states are needed to ratify a constitutional amendment.
This year, it seemed a compromise was reached when legislation was introduced to give D.C., which is overwhelmingly Democratic, a representative in Congress while giving Utah an additional seat, which most likely would be won by a Republican. In April, the measure passed the House, 241-177. But on Tuesday, the Senate couldn't muster the 60 votes needed for cloture. Only 57 senators voted in favor, mostly Democrats and eight Republicans. Two Democrats didn't support the bill. That means the matter will once again be put off indefinitely.
Opponents say the bill is unconstitutional. Specifically, they argue that Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution says members of Congress are selected by "the people of the several states." D.C. is not a state. But Eleanor Holmes Norton, D.C.'s nonvoting delegate to Congress, and others say the Constitution gives Congress the power to extend voting rights to D.C. residents.
There is no denying that giving D.C. residents, who are predominately African-American, the right to vote for a congressional representative would clearly benefit Democrats. More than 60 percent of the registered voters there are Democrats, and in the last presidential race, John Kerry garnered 89 percent of the votes, a higher percentage than he carried in any state.
That is not a legitimate reason to continue the 206-year-old history of denying D.C. residents the right to vote. They pay taxes, serve in the military and live up to all the obligations of citizenship. In exchange, they should enjoy representation in Congress -- the body responsible for writing the nation's laws.