AUGUSTA, ME — Today, veterans from Defend American Democracy (DAD) released a six figure TV ad campaign in Maine to call on Senator King to support D.C. statehood, since 30,000 veterans currently live in D.C. without a vote in Congress. Tomorrow, veterans from Maine will hold a press conference in Augusta, Maine, affirming that statehood is a veteran’s issue, and Sen. King must join the 46 other Senate Democrats co-sponsoring the Washington, D.C. Admissions Act.
Watch the Defend American Democracy ad here
Today is also the historic anniversary of Mainers voting to separate from Massachusetts to become an independent state. Our veterans will honor this anniversary by raising awareness for the 700,000 Americans who have also voted to become an independent state, but remain second class citizens in our democracy.
“We know that Senator King supports our state's veterans, and now we urge him to stand up for the 30,000 veterans living in Washington, D.C. without a vote in Congress,” said Perry O’Brien, Organizing Director at Common Defense, a member of the Defend American Democracy coalition. “Maine veterans know that D.C. statehood is among the most urgent civil rights fights of our generation and we hope Senator King will hear our call today by officially co-sponsoring the Washington, D.C. Admission Act. There's no better time for Senator King to stand on the right side of history than the anniversary of Maine voters overwhelmingly choosing to separate from Massachusetts and become an independent state."
New polling shows a majority of Americans support D.C. statehood, and the D.C. statehood bill has earned record support from 46 Senators. Recently, dozens of Constitutional experts affirmed that D.C. statehood is entirely constitutional.
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About Defend American Democracy: Defend American Democracy is a bipartisan campaign calling on Congress to put politics aside and remain accountable to the oath they swore. The broad coalition of organizations focused on national security and veterans issues includes Common Defense, Truman National Security Project, Protect the Investigation, Law Works, Protect Democracy, Stand Up Republic, Republicans for the Rule of Law, and National Security Action.
