As the US prepares for one of the most anticipated presidential elections in recent history, many residents in one particular area are hoping to use the opportunity to accomplish something that’s long been talked about, but never acted on – the push to give Washington DC statehood.
In 1790, Washington DC was chosen to be the US capital as a compromise between the northern and southern states. At the time, it was not thought of as a place where hundreds of thousands of people would live, but simply a location that would be the home of US federal government.
Fast forward to 2020, however, and DC has grown both in population and sheer economic power. It’s now home to approximately 702,000, giving it a larger population than several states, including Vermont and Wyoming.
But as many proponents for DC statehood have pointed out, those 702,000 residents do not have a voting representative in the US congress.
“Times have changed. DC is now a large metropolitan city, and back in 1961 the 23rd Amendment was passed which gave DC three electoral votes to the presidency,” said Dr Peter Yacobucci, a political science professor at Buffalo State University.
“It’s become an anachronism and to some extent an embarrassment that you have hundreds of thousands of people that don’t have congressional voting rights,” Mr Yacobucci added.
Small protests calling for DC to be recognised as a state are a frequent occurrence in the city, where license plates read “Taxation without representation.” The campaign started in the 1950s but gained momentum in the 80s and remains a widespread demand in DC today.
But its success is contingent on Democrats retaining control of the House of Representatives, taking control of the currently GOP-led senate, and winning the White House in the upcoming election.
A Biden win, could secure the backing DC statehood supporters need. Democratic Presidential nominee Joe Biden has gone on record saying he supports the movement.
“Absolutely, I have for the last 28 years,” Mr Biden said when asked by a supporter of the DC statehood movement whether he would endorse the move.
There is some reason for optimism among those who are pushing to give Washington DC statehood. Back in June, for the first time ever, the US House of Representatives voted to establish DC as the 51st state.
That vote, however, was largely moot as Republicans, who currently control the Senate, have long stood in opposition to the campaign.
As a strongly liberal-leaning city, DC would almost certainly give the Democratic Party more power in congress if it were granted statehood.
“They want to pack the Supreme Court with liberals intent on eroding our constitutional rights and they want to codify all this by making the swamp itself, Washington DC, America’s 51st state with two more liberal senators,” said Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell during his primetime address at the Republican National Convention back in August.
Technically, Washington DC residents have a non-voting congressional representative, Democratic Representative Eleanor Holmes Norton, who has long pushed for DC statehood.
Ms Norton didn’t mince words when addressing Republican-led efforts against DC statehood, recently criticising Republican congressional representatives who sought to blunt the impact of such a move by trying to limit the composition of the Senate, and even possibly fold DC into Maryland.
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“These bills demonstrate Republican fear of the momentum our DC statehood bill is rapidly achieving,” Ms Norton said at the beginning of October. The House passed our DC statehood bill by an overwhelming majority (232-180) that included even members who won seats by only a few points to give Democrats the majority – members from red states.”
With the Democratic-led House of Representatives passing a bill that would give DC statehood, the move to make DC the 51st state appears to be a "distinct possibility" if Mr Biden is elected, Professor Yacobucci said.
“It’s growing in economic strength and political strength," he said, pointing to the city's increasing population and influence. "You have all these people in this area who still are not represented by congress.”
Any momentum the DC statehood movement might have, however, could easily be swept away by a Donald Trump re-election victory on November 3rd. Mr Trump has told media outlets on multiple occasions that DC “would never” become a state, and implied that Republicans would be “stupid” to approve such a move.
It's yet another piece of the 2020 campaign puzzle that makes this election so unique, and at the same time so significant, with an outcome that could re-shape the map of the United States.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
SPECS
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%201.5-litre%204-cylinder%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20101hp%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20135Nm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%20Six-speed%20auto%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20From%20Dh79%2C900%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Now%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Brief scores:
Manchester United 4
Young 13', Mata 28', Lukaku 42', Rashford 82'
Fulham 1
Kamara 67' (pen),
Red card: Anguissa (68')
Man of the match: Juan Mata (Man Utd)
The specs: 2018 Nissan Altima
Price, base / as tested: Dh78,000 / Dh97,650
Engine: 2.5-litre in-line four-cylinder
Power: 182hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque: 244Nm @ 4,000rpm
Transmission: Continuously variable tranmission
Fuel consumption, combined: 7.6L / 100km
'Top Gun: Maverick'
Rating: 4/5
Directed by: Joseph Kosinski
Starring: Tom Cruise, Val Kilmer, Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm, Miles Teller, Glen Powell, Ed Harris
Banned items
Dubai Police has also issued a list of banned items at the ground on Sunday. These include:
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Political flags or banners
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Bikes, skateboards or scooters
Command%20Z
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%C2%A0%3C%2Fstrong%3ESteven%20Soderbergh%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%C2%A0%3C%2Fstrong%3EMichael%20Cera%2C%20Liev%20Schreiber%2C%20Chloe%20Radcliffe%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%C2%A03%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The biog
Favourite book: Men are from Mars Women are from Venus
Favourite travel destination: Ooty, a hill station in South India
Hobbies: Cooking. Biryani, pepper crab are her signature dishes
Favourite place in UAE: Marjan Island
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Saturday, May 16 (kick-offs UAE time)
Borussia Dortmund v Schalke (4.30pm)
RB Leipzig v Freiburg (4.30pm)
Hoffenheim v Hertha Berlin (4.30pm)
Fortuna Dusseldorf v Paderborn (4.30pm)
Augsburg v Wolfsburg (4.30pm)
Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Monchengladbach (7.30pm)
Sunday, May 17
Cologne v Mainz (4.30pm),
Union Berlin v Bayern Munich (7pm)
Monday, May 18
Werder Bremen v Bayer Leverkusen (9.30pm)
MATCH INFO
Bayern Munich 2 Borussia Monchengladbach 1
Bayern: Zirkzee (26'), Goretzka (86')
Gladbach: Pavard (37' og)
Man of the Match: Breel Embolo (Borussia Monchengladbach)
BIOSAFETY LABS SECURITY LEVELS
Biosafety Level 1
The lowest safety level. These labs work with viruses that are minimal risk to humans.
Hand washing is required on entry and exit and potentially infectious material decontaminated with bleach before thrown away.
Must have a lock. Access limited. Lab does not need to be isolated from other buildings.
Used as teaching spaces.
Study microorganisms such as Staphylococcus which causes food poisoning.
Biosafety Level 2
These labs deal with pathogens that can be harmful to people and the environment such as Hepatitis, HIV and salmonella.
Working in Level 2 requires special training in handling pathogenic agents.
Extra safety and security precautions are taken in addition to those at Level 1
Biosafety Level 3
These labs contain material that can be lethal if inhaled. This includes SARS coronavirus, MERS, and yellow fever.
Significant extra precautions are taken with staff given specific immunisations when dealing with certain diseases.
Infectious material is examined in a biological safety cabinet.
Personnel must wear protective gowns that must be discarded or decontaminated after use.
Strict safety and handling procedures are in place. There must be double entrances to the building and they must contain self-closing doors to reduce risk of pathogen aerosols escaping.
Windows must be sealed. Air from must be filtered before it can be recirculated.
Biosafety Level 4
The highest level for biosafety precautions. Scientist work with highly dangerous diseases that have no vaccine or cure.
All material must be decontaminated.
Personnel must wear a positive pressure suit for protection. On leaving the lab this must pass through decontamination shower before they have a personal shower.
Entry is severely restricted to trained and authorised personnel. All entries are recorded.
Entrance must be via airlocks.
Fixtures
Tuesday - 5.15pm: Team Lebanon v Alger Corsaires; 8.30pm: Abu Dhabi Storms v Pharaohs
Wednesday - 5.15pm: Pharaohs v Carthage Eagles; 8.30pm: Alger Corsaires v Abu Dhabi Storms
Thursday - 4.30pm: Team Lebanon v Pharaohs; 7.30pm: Abu Dhabi Storms v Carthage Eagles
Friday - 4.30pm: Pharaohs v Alger Corsaires; 7.30pm: Carthage Eagles v Team Lebanon
Saturday - 4.30pm: Carthage Eagles v Alger Corsaires; 7.30pm: Abu Dhabi Storms v Team Lebanon
match info
Southampton 0
Arsenal 2 (Nketiah 20', Willock 87')
Red card: Jack Stephens (Southampton)
Man of the match: Rob Holding (Arsenal)
THE BIO
Occupation: Specialised chief medical laboratory technologist
Age: 78
Favourite destination: Always Al Ain “Dar Al Zain”
Hobbies: his work - “ the thing which I am most passionate for and which occupied all my time in the morning and evening from 1963 to 2019”
Other hobbies: football
Favorite football club: Al Ain Sports Club
The biog
Hometown: Birchgrove, Sydney Australia
Age: 59
Favourite TV series: Outlander Netflix series
Favourite place in the UAE: Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque / desert / Louvre Abu Dhabi
Favourite book: Father of our Nation: Collected Quotes of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan
Thing you will miss most about the UAE: My friends and family, Formula 1, having Friday's off, desert adventures, and Arabic culture and people
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
How to invest in gold
Investors can tap into the gold price by purchasing physical jewellery, coins and even gold bars, but these need to be stored safely and possibly insured.
A cheaper and more straightforward way to benefit from gold price growth is to buy an exchange-traded fund (ETF).
Most advisers suggest sticking to “physical” ETFs. These hold actual gold bullion, bars and coins in a vault on investors’ behalf. Others do not hold gold but use derivatives to track the price instead, adding an extra layer of risk. The two biggest physical gold ETFs are SPDR Gold Trust and iShares Gold Trust.
Another way to invest in gold’s success is to buy gold mining stocks, but Mr Gravier says this brings added risks and can be more volatile. “They have a serious downside potential should the price consolidate.”
Mr Kyprianou says gold and gold miners are two different asset classes. “One is a commodity and the other is a company stock, which means they behave differently.”
Mining companies are a business, susceptible to other market forces, such as worker availability, health and safety, strikes, debt levels, and so on. “These have nothing to do with gold at all. It means that some companies will survive, others won’t.”
By contrast, when gold is mined, it just sits in a vault. “It doesn’t even rust, which means it retains its value,” Mr Kyprianou says.
You may already have exposure to gold miners in your portfolio, say, through an international ETF or actively managed mutual fund.
You could spread this risk with an actively managed fund that invests in a spread of gold miners, with the best known being BlackRock Gold & General. It is up an incredible 55 per cent over the past year, and 240 per cent over five years. As always, past performance is no guide to the future.
Tips to avoid getting scammed
1) Beware of cheques presented late on Thursday
2) Visit an RTA centre to change registration only after receiving payment
3) Be aware of people asking to test drive the car alone
4) Try not to close the sale at night
5) Don't be rushed into a sale
6) Call 901 if you see any suspicious behaviour
In the Restaurant: Society in Four Courses
Christoph Ribbat
Translated by Jamie Searle Romanelli
Pushkin Press
Crime%20Wave
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