Today, the Senate is debating amendments to the D.C. Voting Rights Act. The act will grant permanent, full voting rights to the District of Columbia in the House of Representatives, add a fourth Representative to Utah, increase overall membership in the House to 437 (from 435), and increase the number of electoral votes to 539 (538). It has achieved cloture, and is certain to pass.
During a time when we are expanding civil rights in America by granting D.C. full voting rights in the House, and when part of the great promise of our civil rights legislation is realized through President Obama, it is high time that the issue of Puerto Rican statehood receive more attention from the federal government. Puerto Rico has a population of over four million (3.8 million according to the 2000 census), which is larger than 24 states according to the 2000 census. To have such a large territory not receive full voting rights in the U.S. House, the U.S. Senate, and in Presidential elections is a travesty for our democracy. While Puerto Ricans do not have to pay income tax, and thus don't face the taxation without representation problem D.C. faced for so long, it is still inexcusable to deny the franchise to so many United States citizens.
The politics for Puerto Rican statehood have never been better. The pro-statehood New Progressive Party holds a super-majority in both branches of the Puerto Rican Congress. A recent poll showed statehood has reached an all-time popularity on the island, favored 57%-34% over the current commonwealth status (although the poll was commissioned by a pro-statehood organization, so take it with a grain of salt). The wide Democratic trifecta in D.C. would make it much easier to pass legislation authorizing a plebiscite on statehood, too. Finally, the new, more positive opinions the world holds to the United States as a result of President Obama's election would make full membership in the United States particularly attractive at this point in time.
If Democrats are truly interested in making the United States more democratic, then pushing for Puerto Rican statehood is a no-brainer move. Also, it is a positive feedback loop for progressives, as both of Puerto Rico's Senators would probably be Democrats (which would really be handy right now), its eight electoral votes would always swing toward Democrats, and five or six of the six Representatives they would send to the U.S. House would be Democrats. I have always been a believer that if Democrats do the right thing for the country, they will benefit politically. This is one situation where that is obviously the case.
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