What links the two bills? The nationalization of elections, the reduced role for states in elections, and that’s only a start. Here’s a primer.
A month ago, 39 scholars, mostly law professors, sent a letter to congressional leaders assuring them that S. 51 faced no constitutional problems, contrary to what others have long thought, including Justice Departments from the time of Attorney General Robert Kennedy. Even the hurdles presented by the 23rd Amendment, which enables D.C. residents to vote for presidential electors, could be overcome, the scholars averred.
Not so fast. S. 51 would create this new state from today’s District of Columbia by reducing the District—the seat of the federal government, as provided for under the Constitution’s Enclave Clause in Article I, Section 8—to a tiny enclave around the National Mall. But there will still be some residents living there, including the first family, and this “District” will still have three outsized Electoral College votes, pursuant to the 23rd Amendment, votes that cannot be taken away by a mere statute like S. 51.