Washington, D.C.

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The WWII memorial and Washington Monument

Washington, D.C., also known as the District of Columbia, since 1800 has been the capital of the United States. [1] Legally the name of the city is "District of Columbia". [2] [3]

Pierre L'Enfant, appointed in 1791 by George Washington, designed much of the city, including the city's interesting quadrant formation. The city is divided into four quadrants, which meet at a central point at the United States Capitol. The Northwest quadrant is by far the largest, and locations in this quadrant include the White House, Ford's Theater (where Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in 1865), the National Zoo, and a number of the Smithsonian Museums. L'Enfant was fired over a dispute involving Thomas Jefferson before the city's design was completed.[4] In 1814, the British army attacked the city as a part of the War of 1812 and burned a number of public buildings in the city, including the White House. First Lady Dolly Madison famously saved a portrait of George Washington from the White House before the building was burned.[5] The city is located along the Potomac River. The Anacostia River branches off this, and runs through parts of the Southeast and Northeast Quadrants. This river has had problems with pollution.

Washington, D.C. is served by the Metrorail subway system.

Contents

Government

Article I of the Constitution specifies that Congress has exclusive legislative jurisdiction over the District of Columbia.[6] In 1973, Congress passed the District of Columbia Self-Government and Governmental Reorganization Act, P.L. 93-198, which proposed a charter that delegated legislative authority to a locally-elected mayor and council; the charter was approved by local referendum in 1974.[7][8]

A view of the Washington Monument and United States Capital In Washington D.C

Politics

The voters in Washington are 90% Democratic. It is America's fourth-most liberal city.[9] The current mayor of the District of Columbia is Adrian M. Fenty.

Elected officials

Federal

Constitutional and legal disputes

On March 9, 2007, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit struck down Washington, D.C.'s ban on private handgun possession, as it pertains to carrying them inside one's own home, on the grounds that the Second Amendment guarantees the right of individual citizens to keep and bear firearms.[11] In a dissent, however, one judge wrote that the District of Columbia is not a state and therefore the Second Amendment does not apply within the District of Columbia. Washington, D.C.'s handgun ban was one of the most restrictive gun control laws in the nation.[12] On June 26, 2008, the Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the Court of Appeals.[13]

License plates in Washington, D.C. read "taxation without representation," referring to the fact that citizens of the District pay federal income taxes but do not have voting representation in either the Senate or House of Representatives. The capital has an elected House representative, Eleanor Norton, but she can only vote in committee, not on the floor. [14] [15] These plates do not appear on the presidential limousines. George Walker Bush had the plates removed from the limousines after his inauguration, reversing William Jefferson Clinton's policy. [16]

Since 1992, Washington, D.C. has offered domestic partnerships, which are similar to same sex marriage.[17]

Symbols

DC flag.

Some official symbols are:

  • Motto: "Justia Omnibus" - Justice for All
  • Song: The Star-Spangled Banner
  • Bird: Wood thrush
  • Flower: American beauty rose
  • Tree: Scarlet Oak

See also

US Capitol.

External links

References

  1. ↑ http://www.senate.gov/reference/reference_item/Nine_Capitals_of_the_United_States.htm
  2. ↑ District of Columbia Organic Act of 1871. Library of Congress
  3. ↑ District of Columbia Information.
  4. ↑ http://www.exploredc.org/index.php?id=3
  5. ↑ http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/washingtonsack.htm
  6. ↑ http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.articlei.html#section8
  7. ↑ http://government.westlaw.com/linkedslice/default.asp?rs=gvt1.0&vr=2.0&sp=dcc-1000
  8. ↑ http://www.narpac.org/ITXICE.HTM
  9. ↑ http://www.govpro.com/News/Article/31439/
  10. ↑ Alas, D.C. is not a state The capital has an elected House representative, Eleanor Norton, but she can only vote in committee, not on the floor.
  11. ↑ See Parker v. District of Columbia, 478 F. 3d 370 (2007) [quoted in District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. ____ (2008).]
  12. ↑ http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=topNews&storyid=2007-03-09T223851Z_01_N09246717_RTRUKOC_0_US-USA-GUNS-RULING.xml&src=rss
  13. ↑ District of Columbia v. Heller [1]
  14. ↑ Alas, D.C. is not a state
  15. ↑ http://dmv.dc.gov/serv/plates/tax.shtm
  16. ↑ http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C06E0DB173CF93AA25752C0A9679C8B63
  17. ↑ Answers.com
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