Photo by brianmka

If there’s one thing that no member of Congress wants to be accused of, it’s not supporting the troops. That very fear might be the only thing that finally gets the District a voting seat in the House of Representatives.

CQ Politics reported this afternoon that House Democratic leaders are considering attaching an amendment to a defense spending bill that would grant the District a voting seat in the House. No decision’s been made yet, and the defense bill will come to a vote in coming weeks. An amendment expanding the definition of federal hate crimes was also recently attached to the defense bill, provoking loud complaints from many Republicans.

As you’ll recall, the D.C. House Voting Rights Act (H.R.157/S.160) was derailed earlier this year by a Republican amendment that would do away with the District’s oft-criticized gun laws. So the logic here is to attach the House seat to a bill that many Republicans would be loath to vote against. It’s smart, if slightly underhanded politics. Don’t forget all those calls from the voting rights community for a “clean” version of the DCHVRA.

DC Vote Executive Director Ilir Zherka, who has worked closely with D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes on the current voting rights legislation, doesn’t see a problem with adding an amendment to the defense bill. “Any way we can get voting rights enacted into law works for us,” he told us. “The goal is to get it done.”