The president is a strong supporter of statehood

Clinton spokesman Steve Boyd

Although residents of the capital pay taxes and serve in the military, they do not have a voting representative in the United States Congress.

Under the constitution, only states are allowed a vote in the House and Senate, and, when the District of Columbia was created to be the nation's capital 200 years ago, its residents lost their right to a congressional vote.

Washingtonians have been engaged in a long-running battle for statehood - in November they approved a licence plate bearing the slogan "taxation without representation".

Now President Clinton has said the armoured limousine he uses most often in the capital will carry those plates in a show of support for DC statehood.

Mr Clinton has long supported DC voting rights

The White House, though, says he won't be joining the usually long lines at the motor vehicle registration department in downtown Washington - that will be left to the secret service.

It is also unclear whether his successor, President-elect George W Bush, will keep them on the car when it becomes his.

He opposes state's rights for the district, so this presidential protest could be short-lived.