NV4 and DC1

[Recursion]

What if the House manages to push through the NV 4 / DC 1 tradeoff before the upcoming election and NV votes in a Republican for their at-large seat. Now, what if in addition, the results for control of the House are very close. And finally, what if the GOP pulls the same kind of strategy they did in '93 to take away Norton's vote in the Committee of the Whole, and say that statutes and House rules don't override the Constitution's limiting of House votes to representatives of the states?

That is, are we really being suckered into giving the GOP another seat and gaining nothing ourself? Wolf (R, VA) is the sponsor on this, after all (though frankly, he's been a better friend of the District than a lot of Democrats, so I don't want to think that). Still... it's a troubling idea.

[DCCyclone]

1. First of all, it's Utah not Nevada...

...that would get the extra House seat.

Second, there's no way Congress will be able to get legislation enacted that would effectuate Utah's extra seat before D.C.'s...they will be created at the same time. Democrats will kill any attempt to do what you're fearing; even if House Dems can't get the votes to kill such a thing, Senate Dems will filibuster it, and it will be horrible p.r. for the Goopers.

Third, if you're fearing a legal argument to be made in the courts to kill the D.C. seat after legislation is enacted creating it, you will have to explain the legal argument. Pardon my language, but are you pulling this notion out of your a$$, and it's just a paranoid fear?...or have you really thought this through?

[Recursion]

2. Sorry, UT, thanks. And to answer your questions:

The legal argument I foresee is the very same one Gingrich used in '94 and '95 to block Norton's vote in the Committee of the Whole: "The House of Representatives shall be composed of members chosen every second year by the people of the several states, and the electors in each state shall have the qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the state legislature." (US Constitution, I.2)

I understand that UT 4 and DC 1 get created at the same time. My worry is that they will once again say "sorry, but the Constitution trumps statutes and House rules. Since the Constitution says 'states', her vote is out."