The D.C. Council wants to travel to all 50 states this year to lobby in person for District statehood, a pursuit that will cost the cash-strapped city thousands of dollars and that critics say amounts to a waste of time.
The coast-to-coast road tour got off to a slow start Thursday when a trip to New Hampshire that was to include Mayor Vincent Gray and members of the council was canceled because of a winter storm in New England.
The trip to Concord would have cost roughly $4,000 for flights and ground transportation for 12 people, according to the council’s Office of the Secretary. Officials could provide no estimate for how much it would cost to travel to all 50 states during the course of the year, whether or not they would make all 50 in 2012 or precisely how many days that would require city officials to set aside city business.
| How much does it cost to …. | ||
| Fly to Tallahassee, Fla. | Kayak.com: ~ $353 roundtrip in Feb. | |
| Drive to Annapolis, Md. | 64 miles roundtrip: ~ $10 for gas, parking $15 | |
| Fly to Juneau, Alaska | Kayak.com: $650-$900 roundtrip | |
| Fly to Sacramento, Calif. | Kayak.com: $350-$500 roundtrip | |
The scheme has met with skepticism from some critics, who have noted the recent felony guilty plea of former Councilman Harry Thomas Jr., the ongoing investigations of Gray and Council Chairman Kwame Brown as reasons why the officials might be better off tending to city business.
The D.C. Republican Committee also questions starting with the Republican-majority New Hampshire legislature instead of nearby Democratic Maryland’s. Republican-leaning states are seen as less supportive of statehood because heavily-Democrat D.C. would automatically give Democrats two more votes in the U.S. Senate.
In a statement Thursday, D.C. GOP Chairman Bob Kabel said the statehood trip would carry more weight if it was bipartisan.
| Related story |
|
|
“Taxpayer funded D.C. Democratic trips around the country will produce great photo opportunities for incumbents seeking difficult re-elections and very little for actual results,” he said.
The only other state confirmed for a visit from politicians is Florida, which at-large Councilman Michael Brown is coordinating. His staff is also plans to speak with legislators in four other states but would not be more specific about destinations until resolutions in those states had been confirmed.
Brown said the purpose is not for photo ops — that public awareness is a tool.
“We need the PR part for folks to be energized and understand what the issue is all about,” he told The Washington Examiner. “And that, in turn, will help build momentum so we can get the support from other states.”
Each council member will pay his or her own expenses from their roughly $19,000 annual office supplies budget, which is funded annually by the city’s general fund. Last year, no council office spent its entire office budget, according to the council secretary, and leftover money is deposited back into the general fund.
The New Hampshire trip would have been the largest contingent, according to council staffers, as Gray, seven council members and three staff members were slated to make the kickoff trip. Flights cost roughly $200 per person and a bus rental was estimated at $1,100.
The trip is tentatively rescheduled for later this month.
