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DC License Plates

I'm not sure if anyone subscribes to my individual feed, and I don't usually write posts on politics (I can hear the sound of browser back buttons right now!), but I saw a license plate on the way home that really made me confused. 

Back in high school, middle school, and maybe even elementary school, we were taught one of the main tenets for rebellion of US colonists in the colonial era was that of “No taxation without representation,” meaning that the freedoms we enjoy today of voting, voice in government, police, fire protection, and emergency healthcare would be bought through taxes.  And conversely, the government shouldn't be able to tax unless it provided the people with such a voice in the government.

Now to my point.  On the way home I saw a Washington DC plate with the slogan: “Taxation Without Representation.”  This made me think for a few minutes, then I understood.  Since DC is not actually a state, and as such does not have statehood representation in the House or Senate, they feel they are unfairly denied a voice in congress.

I looked it up, and there are also similar plates in support of DCians in maryland and virginia. See here for more information from the group that's organizing this.  I'm really surprised the gov't would put slogans like this on license plates!

1 Comment

  • Welcome to DC politics. No surprise to me that folks in the District government chose such a confrontational and inappropriate approach. The people responsible clearly aren't terribly familiar with the U.S. Constitution, specifically Article I, Section 8:



    "To exercise exclusive legislation in all cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten miles square) as may, by cession of particular states, and the acceptance of Congress, become the seat of the government of the United States..."



    Of course, it should also come as no surprise that the previous resident of the White House chose to put the "Taxation without Representation" tags on official White House vehicles. What was that about protecting and defending the Constitution again?



    Oh, and there was an attempt to amend the Constitution to give DC residents voting representation in Congress, but it failed in 1985, not having been ratified by the required number of states.

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