House postpones vote Thursday on giving DC and Utah new seats

WASHINGTON — Legislation to give the District of Columbia a full vote in the U.S. House stalled Thursday when Republicans unexpectedly injected the volatile issue of gun control.

Apparently fearful they might lose control of the proceedings, Democrats decided to put off action indefinitely on the voting rights measure, which had appeared to be moving toward passage.

Republicans protested the delay and sought a quick vote on their attempt to repeal the capital city's ban on handguns. Democratic leaders "shamefully exploited a rule to kill debate and postpone the vote indefinitely," said Republican leader John Boehner of Ohio.

But the city's mayor said there was no support in the district for repeal of its tough gun control laws. Adrian Fenty said that when people learn that D.C. residents again have been denied voting rights, "I think it is going to backfire on those who have done this procedural maneuver."

The developments marked an abrupt turn on legislation that would give district residents voting rights in the House for the first time in more than two centuries. President Bush has threatened to veto the bill, saying the Constitution allows congressional voting representation only to states.

Democrats, backed by civil rights groups, viewed the issue differently.

"It is an historic day, it is a day when the people of the District of Columbia will finally have their voices heard," Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said moments before the postponement.

Added House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md.: "Washington, D.C., is the only capital in a democracy in the entire world that does not have a voting representative in its parliament."

But Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, said that since the city "is not a state, it cannot have a voting member in the House."

The legislation also would create an additional seat in the House, temporarily awarded to Utah pending the next reapportionment in 2010.

The legislation would not change the makeup of the Senate, where the district has no representation.

Debate appeared to be winding down when Republicans exercised their prerogative to outline a proposal to block city officials from any attempt to ban firearms permissible under federal law. The ban is under attack in the courts, and a federal appeals court recently struck down the city's gun law.