Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) says that Washington, D.C. deserves statehood.
During the dedication ceremony of a statue to Frederick Douglass on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, Reid noted that Douglass himself believed in the District's right to statehood.
"Although Mr. Douglass championed many causes - the abolition of slavery and women's suffrage among them - he was also an unwavering advocate for equal representation for residents of the District of Columbia," Reid said.
He added: "Washington, D.C. residents pay taxes, just like residents of Nevada, California or any other state. Washington, D.C. residents have fought and died in every American war, just like residents of Ohio, Kentucky or any other state. And Washington, D.C. residents deserve the same right to self-government and Congressional representation as residents of any other state."
Vice President Joe Biden and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) also mentioned the issue of D.C. statehood in remarks made at the morning's ceremony.
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