I was able to snag this video from the Newschannel 8 website and upload to YouTube. I know its not quite legal, but neither is being denied representation in Congress.
Below is the text of the article:
D.C. Officials Push for Statehood During Inauguration Crowds
With 7,000 red signs posted across the city, District’s shadow senator Michael Brown is demanding statehood for the District – a much more aggressive approach to the voting rights issue. He says the signs are targeting Inauguration crowds and television coverage.
Brown called the D.C. voting rights issue a national disgrace. “You have a president who told Sen. Strauss and I personally that he believes in statehood. :09 You have a majority in both houses of Congress so if you’re not going to push for it now, when are you going to push for it?”
He and other members of the District’s congressional delegation have blanketed the city with the posters. They are calling not just for a vote in the house, but for statehood with one representative, two senators and full independence from Congress.
“It’s the simplest path for us to take. It takes a simple majority vote in Congress to make a state,” said Brown. Many Washingtonians agree with Brown. “This is the perfect time since Obama’s in office that we should be very aggressive pushing for full statehood for D.C.,” said resident Andre Vaughn.
Others think the District should take one step at a time. “I think Eleanor has to get the vote on the floor first. It gives her a little muscle and some leverage and then you go for statehood,” said resident Henry Corbel.
Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton and Mayor Fenty tend to take the latter, more pragmatic approach, focusing first and foremost on Norton’s vote in the House. It’s an approach apparently supported by President-elect Obama.
Brown says he supports a vote in the House, but he says that is not enough. He’s worried the momentum for the voting rights movement is running out. “We have the ball on the one yard line. It’s third down and we’re down by 21 points. No time to kick a field goal. There’s only 3 minutes left in the game. Time to run the ball,” said Brown.
In an interview with Politico, Fenty makes clear he also wants statehood for the District. He calls it “the premiere D.C. issue.” In terms of President-elect Obama’s support, Fenty says “I expect Obama to get behind a pragmatic, but aggressive advancement of voting rights. I think anyone who tells you they know what that would be would be lying. I think the minimum people are hoping for is for a full voting member of the House, but beyond that, it’s just a matter of how far you can go.”
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