Category Archives: All Politics is Local

All Politics is Local, The Daily Feed
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VA Gov Candidate McDonnell’s Disgusting Thesis

Photo courtesy of
courtesy of ‘acebal’

WaPo broke the story over the weekend about the 90 page thesis that the Republican Gubernatorial candidate wrote when he was 34 years old. It’s a paper he wrote about his overall political philosophy and was written in 1989, about a year before he announced he was running for public office in VA. While I am not here to take a partisan stance on any of these issues or races, I must say that this thesis is simply disgusting and absolutely has the potential to be a game changer in this race. McDonnell blatantly discriminates against women and gays with 1950’s like views.

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All Politics is Local, The Daily Feed, The District
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Focus on River East on Kojo Today

Photo courtesy of
‘Frederick Douglass Bridge @ night’
courtesy of ‘Tony DeFilippo’

Today’s Kojo Nnamdi Show spent its first hour talking with three great local blogs on Southeast DC (River East), and they’re all worth reading. If you get the chance, listen to the whole hour on Kojo with guest host Marc Fisher, and with bloggers David Garber (of And Now Anacostia), Susan Kennedy (of Barry Farm (Re)Mixed) and Nikki Peele (of Congress Heights on the Rise) as they talk about their neighborhood, its development, its politics, and life in the part of the city often left off the list. Very worth listening to, in no small part because of the efforts of these excellent DC bloggers.

All Politics is Local
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Health Care Town Hall Fun Comes to Our Backyard

DSC00625
Photos courtesy of Karl Johnson

Congressman James Moran (D-VA), who represents Virginia’s 8th congressional district which covers a large chunk of northern Virginia including Arlington and Alexandria, held a health care town hall meeting tonight at South Lakes High School in Reston, VA. He didn’t go at it alone, however, as he was joined by Gov. Howard Dean. Town halls across the country have become infamous for the shouting and protesting of people against the current health care reform efforts and they hit a dramatic peak when Rep. Barney Frank last week, now famously, told a constituent that arguing with her was “like arguing with a dining room table” because of her ill-informed question asking why he supports Nazi policies.

Tonight’s event started off with very long lines, which began forming hours before the doors were to be opened, protruding out from both sides of the school. The gym’s capacity was close to 2,500 people seated and perhaps another 500 standing. The doors had to be closed at around 7pm, when the program was to start, because the limits had been reached despite those still waiting outside. The media was out in mass for the event and live coverage was provided on CSPAN. The media, and perhaps a large percentage of the constituents, came out to witness what was sure to be an interesting night. Most did not leave disappointed.

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All Politics is Local, The Daily Feed
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Arlington Republicans Becoming Gay Friendly?

Photo courtesy of
‘virginia 11.2.08 – 57’
courtesy of ‘laura padgett’

Arlington is a very progressive and heavily democratic county where Democratic Party candidates have nothing to worry about going into a general election. While that is most likely still the case for the VA House of Delegates race in the 47th district (which includes parts of Court House, Clarendon, Ballston), the republican in the race might just be catching on to some of the progressive values that dems typically use to get elected. While the GLBT community is not huge in Arlington, the majority of local voters are supporters of gay and lesbian equal rights and often use that as a bit of a wedge issue to show why they cannot vote for republicans. Eric Brescia is about to change all of that, at least for his race, according to the Arlington Sun Gazette.

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All Politics is Local, The Daily Feed
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Conservative “Activists” at Metro Stations

Some activity around Union Station and Foggy Bottom Metro stations today; protestors with signs and petition clipboards calling for an end to “Rxationed Health Care” and protecting “Worker’s Rights.” Not your typical Greenpeace minimum wage clipboarders or LaRouchie card table shriners, though; the attire was a bit too far over this side of smart casual, the protestors’ poise a bit disengaged from the normal DC crowd, and the messages just a bit…teabaggy.

Some Twitter mention of this from radical conservative activist @bradtidwell, who is at Foggy Bottom this morning protesting “socialized” health care. I think I got a feel for the general tenor of the protest when one of the Union Station guys shouted “PROTECT WORKERS! DEATH TO UNION THUGS!”

All Politics is Local, The Daily Feed
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DC High Schools to Add STD Testing

Photo courtesy of
‘Face the facts_6296c’
courtesy of ‘hoyasmeg’

A good testing program for STDs, free and confidential, is important to avoiding the spread of gonorrhea, chlamydia and syphilis, all of which are nasty little bugs to be avoided at all costs. However, what about when it comes to treating minors? The Post has word of a new program in DC Schools to do just that. What’s most interesting to me is that the tests are confidential, even to the parents of the student.

This cuts two ways. You guarantee confidentiality, from parents as well as peers, and you can increase participation. But, by acting in loco parentis, you run the risk of knowing a child is at risk of serious illness without telling their guardians and care-givers. So, where’s the dividing line?

All Politics is Local, Entertainment, The Daily Feed
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New Theme Song Alert

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Sen. Al Franken (R) and singer Gloria Gaynor on August 4, 2009 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Brendan Hoffman/WireImage for NARAS)

A little birdie sent me this picture, and it makes me laugh really hard, because, as she pointed out, “if anyone knows the meaning of I Will Survive, it’s Al.”

Franken and Gaynor were both at the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing yesterday on the Performance Rights Act.

All Politics is Local, The Daily Feed
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Meet Jack Kingston of Georgia

kingston.jpg

Folks, this is Jack Kingston. He’s a Republican representative from the 1st District of Georgia, and he’s the latest in a long line of politicians to interfere in DC’s Home Rule. He has submitted an amendment to a House bill that would prevent needle exchange within 1,000 feet of any gathering place for children, a map for which looks pretty sparse. But, since Rep Kingston has displayed such an interest in looking out for the District, you can now give him a call for all of your constituent service issues:

Rep. Jack Kingston
2368 Rayburn HOB
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-5831
Fax: (202) 226-2269

All Politics is Local, The Daily Feed
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Kwame Brown Live-tweets Budget Gap Hearing

Kwame Brown

Usually we get the best DC Council livetweets from Mike “Loose Lips” DeBonis, but today, we’re getting them right from Councilman Kwame Brown, who tweeted during today’s budget meeting as the council worked through the last of the $50M imbalance:

  • Sales tax increase rejected
  • Parking tax increase still barely hanging on
  • If you smoke. Your (sic) paying more. Increase tax likely.
  • Small cigar tax look very likely
  • Job traing for DC residents still in budget. Good possibly of increase. Time to help those in the most need.
  • 2 automobile tax died rightfully so! Families deserve to not be taxed for having 2 cars.
  • I’m very proud of how Chairman Gray has conducted the budget reduction processes.
  • Do you want you property taxes raised? Even if it cost 50 to 100 extra dollars?
  • Would you mind paying more for a glass of wine?

The answer to the questions at the end is, “That Depends,” both on how the money is collected, what it’s used for, and whether this is temporary or permanent. It’s nice to see some of this as it happens.

All Politics is Local, Business and Money, News, The Daily Feed
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Reopening 7th St. SE?

Photo courtesy of
‘IMG_7025’
courtesy of ‘Sean Robertson’

After the infamous Eastern Market fire two years ago, Mayor Fenty ordered 7th St. SE closed on weekends to make room for stalls displaced by the disaster.  As most of you know, the market reopened several weeks ago, and WaPo reports that store owners along 7th are requesting that the street be reopened.  They are concerned that parking and traffic difficulties resulting from the closure are limiting their business, most of which comes on weekends.  Stores along market row report a 35% to 75% drop in business since the road closures began.

Their pleas have caught the attention of the City Council, which plans to visit the issue in several months. For now, the government wishes for the street to remain closed to facilitate the revitalization of Eastern Market. 

It seems to me that the 7th St. closure shouldn’t have any effect on Market Row businesses.  There are many, many side streets in the area and ample parking on the blocks surrounding 7th. I’m not entirely sure why the closure of a single block would limit their number of customers.  Besides, Eastern Market is always packed.  According to the WaPo article, the majority of these businesses’ patrons are market goers. If anything, I’ve noticed an increase of people on the weekends.  I’m guessing that there are factors aside from the road closure that are hurting these shops’ revenues.  The economy?  Changing tastes and interests?  An increasingly younger clientele? It could be any number of things.

What are your thoughts on the matter?  Does 7th St. need to stay closed, or should it be reopened?

All Politics is Local, Life in the Capital, Music, The Daily Feed
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Health Care: How DC Stacks Up

Photo courtesy of
‘Health Care Rally for a Public Option in front of Senator Bill Nelson´s Office’
courtesy of ‘leoncillo sabino’

Interested in how the Health Care debate and potential reforms will impact the District?  For starters, try reading up on DC’s Health Care current status quo.  I’m not advocating for any specific plan (I’m still trying to edu-ma-cate myself) but the DC site has some stats that really bring the health care debate to the home front.  Here’s to hoping that our government can come up with a solution that’s both viable and effective.

All Politics is Local, The District, The Features
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Project Nur – “In Solidarity With Iran”

Project Nur

Project Nur Flashmobber

We got the alert about the roving Iran flashmob yesterday mostly from our various day job employers. Property management companies were sounding the alarm with their tenants- oh noes! Flash mobs have turned violent in other cities!

Their concern was, shall we say, overstated. I had to look hard for the Project Nur group at the Lincoln memorial- it was about 6 people; a few twenty-somethings, and one person who appeared to be a bit older. At a signal, the flashmobbers ran to positions on lower staircase in front of the Memorial, and stood silently, holding up their printed handbills so that people could both see and take them, but not engaging in any interaction with the assortment of sightseers who walked by. Which was kind of unfortunate, because they were largely ignored that way, and what’s happening in Iran is important not only to Iran, but the whole Middle East as well as the world.

The whole thing was a little anticlimactic, honestly, after the talk of an “agitprop” demonstration in solidarity with Iranians. That said, it’s hard to come up with a noticeable group activity with 5 (I hear there were about a dozen at Federal Triangle), and I did appreciate their respect for people who were just there to check out the memorial.

At the end of their prescribed silent demonstration time, the protesters walked around, quietly offering leaflets to passerby. Speaking of the leaflets- I have to say I’m impressed- I wish I could get a good photo to show you. The text was well-written, and cogently lays out the basic facts about what’s happening in Iran and how interested people can get involved. Which include, in addition to writing to your Member of Congress (for those who actually have representation, hmm…), pressuring Nokia to stop providing and supporting the surveillance technology the Iranian regime is using to crack down on the protesters, which surprised me. I learned something I didn’t know today through the protest, so it was effective in that regard.

Click through for more photos of the protest. Continue reading →

All Politics is Local, The Daily Feed, WMATA
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Liveblogging the Metro Crash Hearing

Photo courtesy of
‘Eleanor Holmes Norton Schools Union Station Management’
courtesy of ‘lightboxdc’

Dr. Gridlock over at WaPo is liveblogging the congressional subcommittee hearing over the recent WMATA crash. We had a chance to submit some questions; hopefully we’ll see those brought up. So far, DC Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, a subcommittee member, has said that today’s hearing will make public all that is known now, allowing the public to separate urban legend from authoritative testimony.

Catch the latest updates over on Dr. Gridlock’s column.

All Politics is Local, The Daily Feed, WTF?!
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WSJ: The Nationals Are Like The Senate GOP

Photo courtesy of
‘mccainwilsonpearce’
courtesy of ‘twinkletoez’

And, I have no idea who is worse for the comparison. But, here, the WSJ argues that like the Nationals, the Senate GOP is asking, “Why are we here?”

It’s hard not to think of a few more obvious parallels to yesterday’s hysterical McSweeney’s piece on what might happen if the 1977 Royals were in charge of the hearings. Certainly, it’s funnier to think what it might be like if the Republicans in the Senate Judiciary Committee were members of the Nationals. Perhaps Senator Hatch (R-UT) could start in place of Adam Dunn? I mean, he can’t be any worse in the field, right? I suspect Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) could stare down batters a lot more effectively than Kip Wells. What are your picks?

All Politics is Local, Life in the Capital, The Daily Feed
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DC Goes a Little Gayer

Photo courtesy of
‘I DO support GAY marriage!’
courtesy of ‘galifa85’

Despite referendums and protests, today DC became the 10th jurisdiction in the US to recognize gay marriage.  In May, the City Council passed legislation amending DC code to recognize legal same-sex marriages performed outside of the District.  This legislation passed the requisite 30 day review by Congress and today, officially became law.  This marks a major victory for gay-rights advocates and sets the city well on the path to full same sex marriage legalization .

All Politics is Local, The Daily Feed, The District
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33 Car Lots Lose License in DC

Photo courtesy of
‘Untitled’
courtesy of ‘s.carlson’

Mayor Fenty announced this afternoon that 33 auto dealers lost their licenses to operate in the district. By revoking their licenses, these lots fall under the vacant properties provisions of recent tax bills, which means they can be taxed at a rate of $5 per $100 of assessed value, instead of the normal rate.

DCRA will be enforcing more restrictions starting tomorrow against area businesses that might be considered blights on their community. The Post article cites one requirement in specific that may be at the root of some of these revocations: a $100,000 bond is required for used car dealers in the District and many area banks are balking at backing used car dealers, even in this market. But, this will perhaps encourage some area businesses to play by the rules, or abandon their property. Either way, we’ll see some regulatory effects here in the short term.

All Politics is Local, The Daily Feed, WTF?!
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Linestanding

Photo courtesy of
‘La Guardia to New York 6’
courtesy of ‘GregPC’

The Daily Beast has a piece up today on the noble profession of line-standing, and how the character of the profession is changing as the people who want a guaranteed spot to watch a hearing in the Capitol go from being bike couriers or interns to being the Homeless. The video’s pretty insightful, and asks the question: Should linestanding be permitted as part of the democratic process, where those who can pay someone to stand in line on their behalf get all the access?

This seems to be another case of paying the homeless to do something (y’know, like union protesting) that you should be paying staff to do, but that just might be me being ornery.

All Politics is Local, The Features
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Does the Referendum Rejection Even Mean Anything?

Photo courtesy of
‘Activists Grandmothers’
courtesy of ‘Poldavo (Alex)’

Did the Board of Elections and Ethics kill the gay marriage debate in DC by ruling against “The Referendum Concerning the Jury and Marriage Amendment Act?”  Hardly. It codified DC’s position on defining marriage and headed off the marriage-opponents’ major strategy, but it didn’t come near to ending the debate.  After unpacking the Board’s reasoning and looking at where the ruling leaves both sides, the battle lines are still in basically the same place. No legal answer was given as to whether or not DC will be the next area to legalize gay marriage.

I realize that in saying this, I appear to be back-pedaling.  In my my previous post on this subject, I said that a referendum was the best shot that marriage opponents had at having their way.  In saying that, I was not referring to what ended up before the board.  At the time, it appeared the the referendum would be a comprehensive, Prop 8 type piece of legislation.  Instead, the referendum proffered was designed to prevent the city from recognizing legal, same sex marriages performed in other states and countries.

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All Politics is Local, Downtown, Essential DC, The Daily Feed
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Is Adrian Fenty the Next Obama?

Photo courtesy of
‘well-dressed mayor’
courtesy of ‘philliefan99’

The Daily Beast seems to think that it’s possible.  In today’s “Big Fat Story,” Fenty was proffered amongst six rising, African-American political stars that the publication feels are following in the President’s foot steps.  The Daily Beast cites the Mayor’s landslide victory and his work with the DC school system as being Obama-like qualities. While there is little doubt that Adrian Fenty, or any politician, would love to see success like Obama’s, the real question is whether or not he has the character to move outside of DC city politics.  What are your thoughts?

All Politics is Local, Crime & Punishment, News, The Daily Feed, WTF?!
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Eleanor Holmes Norton: Voting Rights Can Wait

Photo courtesy of
‘DSC_2721’
courtesy of ‘Ghost_Bear’

Mike DeBonis (Loose Lips of the City Paper) has the news that Eleanor Holmes Norton is killing this year’s Voting Rights Bill, mostly thanks to the inability of Steny Hoyer to get his party in line over the removal of the Ensign amendment. The Voting Rights Bill may come back in another Congress, but for now it remains a continuing elusive dream for the District of Columbia.

The Ensign amendment, designed to remove all of the District’s current firearms registration laws and revert to the Federal standards, was transformed into a national referendum by the NRA, who promised to grade legislators on their vote. With political pressure weighing on centrist Democrats who support 2nd amendment rights, the Ensign amendment passed handily and put a boat anchor on the bill. Unable to remove it in Conference, Congresswoman Norton has requested that the Bill be tabled until some time in the future.

If you’d like to register your displeasure, you can contact the office of Senator John Ensign, below. Perhaps we can arrange for a mail-in campaign where we send him something to symbolize the disenfranchisement of the District on a Federal Level?

Senator John Ensign, Nevada
119 Russell Senate Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Phone: (202) 224-6244