DC delegate calls out ‘inconsistency’ of lawmakers in support of Hong Kong protesters

Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) called on lawmakers in support of Hong Kong protesters to endorse voting rights for the District of Columbia.

On Thursday, 21 lawmakers sent a letter urging President Obama to “speak out personally” to support the pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong. Norton argued that the 10 Republican signatories’ views were inconsistent because they do not support granting D.C. voting rights in Congress. 

{mosads}”As a veteran of the civil rights movement, I applaud those in Hong Kong who are demanding their democratic rights,” Norton said in a statement. “I also commend the 21 senators for supporting democracy in Hong Kong. However, I hope the Republican signatories recognize their inconsistency in supporting democracy abroad while actively opposing it in their own nation’s capital.”

All Democratic signatories who were in the Senate in 2009 voted in favor of giving D.C. a voting representative in the House.

Protesters in Hong Kong are demanding the Chinese government drop its requirement that all candidates for the semi-autonomous state’s chief executive be approved by the Communist Party. Beijing has refused to reverse the requirement, calling the protests “illegal.”