Washington Mayor Marion S. Barry has done the unthinkable by all but asking for a federal takeover of the District of Columbia. Last Thursday Mr. Barry said there is no way the District, which has a projected budget deficit of $722 million this year, can get out of the mess it's in by itself. He proposed drastic cuts in city services coupled with a federal takeover of the District's hospitals, courts, jails and most welfare programs.
Mr. Barry's proposal was a stunning admission of his administration's inability to put its house in order -- this after running a bitterly divisive election campaign in which he hammered away at the theme of civic and personal redemption. But there's plenty of blame to go around -- including for Congress, which is poised to seize control of the city's finances. Congress' posturing reminds us of the Claude Raines character in the movie "Casablanca": "We're shocked, shocked that your budget isn't balanced!" This from a body charged under the Constitution with overseeing D.C.'s affairs.
Having just passed a bill limiting so-called "unfunded mandates" from the federal government to the states, Congress needs to apply the same principle to the District, which shoulders many of the responsibilities of state government without the revenue-raising resources most states enjoy.
For example, the District runs St. Elizabeth's, the equivalent of a state mental hospital, as well as the Lorton Correctional Facility, a state prison in all but name. It also supports a university and law school as well as a large hospital complex that in any other city would be privately operated.
District officials bear a share of blame, too. In his previous incarnation as mayor from 1979 to 1990, Mr. Barry padded the rolls with so many patronage appointments that city employment became a kind of anti-poverty program. His successor, Sharon Pratt Kelly, failed to shrink the bloat. And the City Council and the District's politically ambitious elected school board both spent money with little thought to consequences.
Mr. Barry now says the District got a raw deal when home rule began 20 years ago. Washingtonians were so eager for self-government, he said, they ignored serious structural problems built into the home rule charter. The argument has merit, though coming from Mr. Barry it's also somewhat self-serving. The present mess obviously has deep roots, but Mr. Barry's previous stewardship contributed greatly to the problem.
That is one reason some sort of congressional takeover now seems inevitable. And once Congress comes in, it probably won't be in any hurry to leave. That's a bitter pill for District residents who only a few years ago looked forward to statehood and an end to second-class status as wards of the federal government. Now they will have to wait a while longer. They can thank Mr. Barry, among others, for that as well.