Clinton's Guam Stance Explained: Amend the Constitution
May 03, 2008 6:00 PM
The ever-helpful Mo Elleithee of the Clinton campaign explains his boss's pledge to the citizens of Guam (pre-caucus) to bestow upon them full voting rights.
(One of my questions below, I should point out, was in error -- residents of Guam are already U.S. citizens. It's Samoans who are U.S. nationals eligible for citizenship -- not citizens of Guam. My bad.)
In any case, Elleithee explains that Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., "believes that every American citizen should be able to vote for the president and have their vote count. Citizens should have representation in the executive branch of their national government. Territories send young men and women to serve in the U.S. military, and they should have a say in who is their commander in chief."
That said, Elleithee writes, Clinton "has not advocated a particular method for getting this done, but it would likely mean an amendment to the Constitution. (Recall that D.C. citizens got the right to vote for president without statehood through the 23rd amendment.) In the case of Puerto Rico, in particular, it could also mean statehood if a majority of Puerto Ricans choose that option among Puerto Rico's various status options. (Please see her policy statement on Puerto Rico, which is on her Web site.)"
more...
http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/05/clintons-guam-s.html