Time to return DC to Virginia and Maryland?

As the Democrats consider proposing to convert DC into a state, it is worth considering why DC is not a state and where it came from.

James Madison persuasively argued in the Federalist papers among other places that the nation’s capitol needed to be distinct from states. There are many reasons for this, but at the end of the day, states have interests that differ from the country as is so often illustrated in the almost daily debates that take place in Congress. DC should be governed based on the national interest and not become part of the polarized political debate going on in this country.

But if politicians are persuaded that DC need not be distinct from states, then the land ceded to create DC should simply be returned to Maryland and Virginia. This land was only ceded because it was deemed important for DC not to be a state. Changing the underlying premise for why DC exists means you effectively “voided” the deal. So give the land back.

The most cynical reason to make DC a state would be to manipulate the political make up of the Senate. If that becomes the driving reasons, then given the amount of Federal land in Republican dominated “mountain” states, we should expect a host of “new” states in the future to go hand in hand with “court packing”. Imagine the 100 states of America!

It is pretty clear that all the fears George Washington expressed concerning political parties are being put on display and it is quite disgusting. But if politicians insist that politics is not a reason for making DC a state and that DC no longer needs to be independent of states, then return the ceded land back to the states from which it was derived.

For some reason, I think that would dramatically cool the passions of those Democrats advocating DC no longer be an independent district. Whether you are a conservative or a liberal it is time for all of us unite and tell our politicians to keep the competition at the ballot box and stop the not so cute administrative maneuvers being foisted on the American people like creating new states, weaponizing government agencies, holding monkey trial impeachments with little chance of going anywhere. Maybe just maybe politicians should get back to doing their job working on bipartisan legislation that forces compromises and keeps our country centered.