Just like with the late-night votes in the D.C. Council on whether or not to finance the construction of a new stadium a few years back, we all hoped to wake up this morning and find out that the Senate had voted again and decided that voting rights for the District was a go. No such luck. We did, however, pick up a new champion for the cause. Sen. John Warner (R-Va.) was the only... more ›

Good morning, D.C., and welcome to another day without congressional representation — it seems we'll have plenty more of them thanks to yesterday's legislative disappointment. You can find the Post's post-mortem here. There's not too much new information in it, but there are words of consolation from Senate minority leader/arch-villain Mitch McConnell: "If the residents of the District are to get a member for themselves, they have a remedy: amend the Constitution." Thanks for... more ›

And so it was -- the U.S. Senate voted today 57-42 in favor of closing debate on legislation that would grant the District a voting seat in the House of Representatives, three short of what was needed to prevent a Republican-led filibuster. The measure, which passed the House in April, is now likely dead, and another attempt to correct a 200-year injustice has been thwarted. Of course, the legislation could be re-introduced, but it won't... more ›

2:11 p.m. OK, we should be about ready to get going here. We've been told there will only be about 15 minutes of debate on this before a vote takes place to prevent a filibuster -- as you all know by now, we need 60 for the bill to move forward. I'll be posting updates as things get going, and Martin may pop in with his two cents if he can, so stay with us... more ›

As the Senate prepares to vote today over whether to close debate on legislation granting the District a voting seat in the House of Representatives, no one can safely say whether the votes will be there to head off a threatened filibuster. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) made his opposition to the bill painfully clear in a floor speech yesterday, and voting rights activists have been scrambling to gain enough Republican allies to reach... more ›

If you've got a few minutes to spare, the folks over at D.C. Vote have asked that as many people as possible pick up a phone and call the Senate to demand that legislation granting the District a voting seat in the House be allowed to move forward tomorrow. Just call the toll-free number 1-866-346-3008 up until 5 p.m. and ask to speak to your senator. District residents will be patched through to Sen. Mitch... more ›

After letting us all enjoy a good summer break, next week the U.S. Senate will start debating legislation that would grant the District a voting seat in the House of Representatives. And in preparing for what is sure to be a spirited battle, big-name voting rights activists have recently stepped up the pressure with two back-to-back op-eds in Washington papers. Yesterday Maryland's former Lt. Gov. Michael Steele and former Oklahoma Republican Rep. J.C. Watts penned... more ›

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announced yesterday that he intends to bring the D.C. Voting Rights bill (S. 1257) to the Senate floor during the week of September 17. The bill passed the House this spring and has already cleared two Senate committees, though Reid was unwilling to bring the bill to the floor before the August recess, expressing concern at the time that it had not quite secured the 60 votes it would need... more ›

We were bummed when the U.S. Senate decided in late July that legislation granting the District a voting seat in the U.S. House of Representatives would have to go on summer break with the rest of Congress. But now that they're all back, so is the push for D.C. voting rights. more ›

As you, faithful DCist reader, should know, today is the day that you can take action for District voting rights. And if you haven't already, why not take your lunch break to call the toll-free number the folks at D.C. Vote have set-up (1-866-346-3008) and lobby a senator? If you're a District resident, you'll get patched through to Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). If not, you'll get your home senator. On top of the handy... more ›

Now that it turns out there's almost nothing more embarrassing than watching self-made videos of goofy Americans asking leading questions to presidential candidates, we'd like to suggest you take a valuable lesson from the experience by choosing not to enter your workplace this morning wearing wraparound sunglasses, a Viking outfit or a salmon-colored suit jacket. We'll leave the choice of affecting an over-the-top southern drawl up to you, but you can probably guess where... more ›

After next week, Washington's wheels will grind to a sudden month-long halt as members of Congress leave the city for their traditional August recess. Armed with that deadline, voting rights activists are making a last-minute push in the U.S. Senate. When we last checked, legislation to grant the District a voting seat in the House of Representatives was ready to be debated on the floor of the Senate, though supporters of the bill admitted to... more ›

After legislation granting the District a voting seat in the House of Representatives passed two weeks ago, the question that remained was how the Senate would look upon the proposal. Well, today we'll find out. more ›

This weekend, as Washingtonians celebrated Earth Day with Anacostia River cleanups and tree plantings at the National Zoo, the Post highlighted the Capitol Power Plant, a coal-burning blight to Southeast. Thanks to Senators Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.) and Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), the familiar smokestacks continue to burn coal in the heart of the District, a clear violation of the Clean Air Act. In 2000, when officials wanted to stop using the dirtiest of fossil fuels, the... more ›

We mentioned before that some Republicans in Congress were trying to prevent the free Live Earth concert from happening on the Mall. Turns out they were successful: it's going to be at Giants Stadium in New York New Jersey instead. With a reunion of The Police. Thanks guys. We don't need a vote in Congress or a free concert. You're really looking out for us. Republicans James Inhofe and Mitch McConnell led the charge against... more ›

Republicans in Congress just haven't been nice to the District lately -- they delayed a vote on the voting rights bill by adding a rider to end D.C.'s handgun ban, and now they're preventing a free concert from being held near the Capitol on July 7. The concert was to be part of Al Gore's Live Earth series of concerts to raise environmental awareness and was to feature some combination of acts like the Police,... more ›