Granting statehood to the District of Columbia would end two centuries of taxation without representation for the city's residents and erase "an insult to democracy," the House was told Saturday.

But as fervent debate opened on the House floor, statehood opponents called the proposal unconstitutional and said Congress has an enduring interest in maintaining they district's current status."It was never intended that the district was to act as a state," said Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va. "It was the intention of the founders to make it the federal city."

Legislation to make the district the nation's 51st state was given almost no chance of actually passing the House and even supporters conceded they had little chance of winning. But they said the vote would help the statehood cause.

The House, which met on the weekend in order to clear its calendar before adjourning for the year, was to vote on the statehood issue late Sunday afternoon.

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Civil rights leader Jesse Jackson, who won election as the district's main advocate of statehood, said bringing the issue to the floor of the House is an important step forward.

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