Viewpoints
Opinion

Why the District of Columbia Should Not Be a State

Google LogoMark Us Preferred on Google
Why the District of Columbia Should Not Be a State
Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) speaks during a press conference on the House vote on D.C. statehood, in Washington on April 21, 2021. Nicholas Kamm/AFP via Getty Images
Rob Natelson
|Updated:
Commentary

In June 1783, the Confederation Congress was meeting in what is now Independence Hall in Philadelphia. Continental soldiers surrounded the building demanding back pay. They were peaceful, but the intimidation was plain.

Google LogoMark Us Preferred on Google
Rob Natelson
Rob Natelson
Author
Robert G. Natelson, a former constitutional law professor, is Senior Fellow in Constitutional Jurisprudence at the Mountain States Policy Center and the Independence Institute. He authored “The Original Constitution” (4th ed., 2025) and is a contributor to the Heritage Foundation’s “Heritage Guide to the Constitution.”
Related Topics