Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

GOP Sen.'s Assertion That Founding Fathers 'Never Intended' For DC To Be A State Gets Brutal History Lesson

GOP Sen.'s Assertion That Founding Fathers 'Never Intended' For DC To Be A State Gets Brutal History Lesson
Sarah Silbiger-Pool/Getty Images

Republican Senator Mike Rounds from South Dakota got dragged on Twitter after making a statement against House Democrats' bill that would admit Washington D.C. as the 51st state.

The two political parties clashed over a proposal, known as the Washington, D.C. Admission Act, that was introduced in January by Democratic House Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton.


The bill would allow for the admission of a new state, called Washington, Douglass Commonwealth – which would be represented by two senators and one voting member of Congress.

House Democrats – who are in favor of the bill – argued that Washingtonians are treated as "second-class citizens," while House Republicans accused Democrats of pushing for the legislation to seek political gain.

On Monday, Senator Rounds tweeted:

"The Founding Fathers never intended for Washington D.C. to be a state."
"#DCStatehood is really about packing the Senate with Democrats in order to pass a left-wing agenda."

The Senator's claim came as Congress is set to debate over bids for the District of Columbia's statehood.

But given the history of Rounds' home state, his statement backfired on social media.

Many people were quick to point out the Founders never sought statehood for two Dakotas either – much less, one.

Prior to being split and admitted to the union as North and South Dakota, the formerly incorporated territory was known as the Dakota Territory.

One reason the U.S. territory was split into two states was that Republicans passed the Enabling Act of 1889 so they could acquire two more Senate seats – one of which is currently occupied by Rounds.

Class was in session on Twitter – where Rounds was schooled for his ignorance of his home state's history.

















People continued piling on criticism for Rounds for his selective knowledge.






One of the catalysts pushing for D.C.'s statehood was due to the Capitol riot on January 6.

Washington's status as a federal district instead of a territory prevented the city's top elected official to summon the National Guard to support the outnumbered police officers during the insurrection.

Only the President, secretary of defense, and secretary of the Army have the power to call up the D.C. National Guard.

Oversight Chairwoman Representative Carolyn Maloney – a member of the Democratic Party – told ABC News:

"The horrific events of Jan. 6th epitomized the need for D.C. statehood. Each of the 712,000 tax-paying D.C. residents deserve to have their voices heard in Congress and have elected officials with the ability to protect them from domestic terrorists, as happened on Jan. 6th when the D.C. Metropolitan Police and National Guard came to the assistance of the Capitol Police."

More from News

Screenshot of Stephen Colbert
CBS

Stephen Colbert Makes Somber Plea To Americans In Wake Of Charlie Kirk's Death

Late-night host Stephen Colbert had a somber message for Americans as he addressed the assassination of far-right activist Charlie Kirk, stressing that "political violence only leads to more political violence."

Kirk died after an unidentified gunman shot him in the neck as he—ironically enough—mocked victims of gun violence at an event in Utah Valley State University. Kirk's murder has galvanized the far-right, with President Donald Trump and his surrogates claiming without evidence that rhetoric from Democrats is responsible for Kirk's death.

Keep ReadingShow less
a woman sunbathing on rocks.
a person sitting on a towel on a beach
Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

People Share The Weirdest Flexes They Heard Someone Say With A Straight Face

It is never attractive to gloat.

Even so, some people can't help but brag, or "flex" as it is sometimes known, about certain accomplishments or attributes.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from @thedowntheredoc's TikTok video
@thedowntheredoc/TikTok

TikToker Hilariously Calls Out Target After Champion Pants Feature Awkwardly-Placed Front Pleat

Sometimes you can just tell when something was designed *for* women, but was not actually designed *by* women.

Take, for instance, the new pleated pants available at Target from the Champion clothing line. While there's nothing wrong with pleated pants and they certainly have a suitable spot in the workplace, the latest rendition of Champion pleated pants are, shall we say, NSFW.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from @kaicutch's Instagram video
@kaicutch/Instagram

Woman Flips Her Car After Belting Out Ironic Britney Spears Lyric In Wild Viral Video

Whether we want to admit it or not, we've all had our fair share of carpool karaoke and maybe even imagined our car as our own personal recording studio.

But TikToker and Instagrammer Kaitlynn McCutcheon may have gotten too into her performance of Britney Spears' classic, "Hit Me Baby, One More Time," when the road and her car both said, "Bet."

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from ​@lynnshazeen's TikTok video
@lynnshazeen/TikTok

Woman Goes Viral After Revealing How Her Obsession With Matcha Landed Her In The Hospital

Let's be honest: Too much of anything isn't good for us. It's all about the balance!

But the media and social media trends have taught us that certain things are really good for us, encouraging us to be like the "very mindful and very demure" girls and take care of ourselves. One such example is drinking more matcha, especially if you really like coffee or think you have a caffeine addiction.

Keep ReadingShow less