U.S. House passes bill to make Washington, D.C., the 51st state

By Richard Cowan WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday narrowly voted, for the second time in less than a year, to make the District of Columbia the 51st state, sending it to the Senate where it faces stiff Republican opposition. By a vote of 216-208, the Democratic-controlled House approved the initiative with no Republican support. The population of Washington, D.C., is heavily Democratic. As a state, it likely would elect two Democratic senators, potentially altering the balance of power in the Senate, which now has 50 Democrats and 50 Republicans. Democrats, …

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