Don't Create a Washington City-State

The District of Columbia is and should be a federal government compound, containing the three branches (executive, legislative, and judicial) and representing all of the states. If the District becomes one of the states, the principal headquarters of the three arms of government will be isolated within the confines and jurisdiction of this one state. Perhaps those employed by the federal government would have divided loyalties between local and national affiliations.

I was born and grew up in D.C. and always felt I was privileged to live within a federal district which was reserved for the seats of the United States government.

Many residents are drawn to Washington, D.C., either to serve the government offices, represent their state before the Congress, or peddle influence. Most of these people have retained their legal status as residents of the states from which they came.

Washington, D.C., belongs to all citizens of the United States as the official headquarters of the nation and as a national monument. It should remain that way in symbolic terms and in fact. E. M. Grinder, Williamsburg, Va.

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