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New Hampshire Rejects D.C.'s Statehood Pitch

By: WAMU Staff // January 28, 2012
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The New Hampshire state legislature shot down a bill Friday that would have voiced support for D.C. statehood.
Holley St. Germain (http://www.flickr.com/photos/stgermh/565664120/)
The New Hampshire state legislature shot down a bill Friday that would have voiced support for D.C. statehood.

New Hampshire lawmakers have rejected a resolution that would have supported admitting the District of Columbia to the union as the 51st state, according to the Associated Press.

District of Columbia Mayor Vincent Gray and members of the D.C. Council flew to New Hampshire on Friday to testify before a state legislative committee considering the resolution. The D.C. contingent spent some time clearing up common misconceptions, like that D.C. has a voting member in the U.S. Senate and that the District doesn't raise its own revenues.

Lawmakers rejected the proposal 8-3, citing concerns about whether it was constitutional. Republican committee members in particular were critical of the proposal.

The section of the constitution cited was Article 1, Section 8, which refers to D.C. as "the Seat of the Government of the United States."

The initial resolution in support of D.C. statehood was introduced in the New Hampshire House of Representatives by Democrat Cindy Rosenwald.

The trip cost the city about $4,000.

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