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| | Three times in two weeks, the Washington Post editorials have thundered against Janeese Lewis George. Clearly, the progressive mayoral candidate’s politics are at odds with the new company line ordered up by Jeff Bezos. But will anyone listen to the denunciations? | | It’s a question that vexes operatives working the first local election of the post-paper-of-record era. The Post’s editorials could once make or break a candidate, and its army of reporters could set the agenda for the rest of the media. The outlet’s mission, though, has changed. It’s anyone’s guess as to who’s setting the agenda instead. | | You can see the effect in some of the coverage already. One reason for Lewis George’s strong start was that, unlike Kenyan McDuffie, her democratic-socialist politics brought her an energetic online fan base that could fill some of the local media vacuum. | | Conversely, a veteran on one citywide campaign told me that the controversy over Lewis George’s statements on Zionism — she said she’d shun events “promoting Zionism,” before trying to make amends with Jewish groups — would have been a week-long PR headache in the old days. Not this time. | | But the biggest change is yet to come. Right about now, around two weeks before election day, the old D.C. would be awaiting the big Post endorsement — something that could steer thousands of votes. Even more could be swayed by endorsements for offices like D.C. Council. | | Now, though, the reconfigured Post has alienated a lot of the old faithful. And the rest of the media mostly steers clear of endorsing candidates. The undecided and the underinformed are going to have to find some other way of making up our minds. | |
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| | | Tell the DC Council it’s time to act. Mayor Bowser is slashing essential programs that support our neighbors in hard times, such as child care, economic and food assistance, health care, and housing. Unless the Council votes to raise revenue by having the wealthy to pay their fair share, District residents will be harmed. Email the Council now and urge them to act. DC can’t afford these cuts. | |
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| What D.C.'s Talking About |
| Off Center. A federal judge on Friday ordered Donald Trump’s name off the Kennedy Center and paused plans for a two-year closure of the arts shrine, ruling that the institution's board acted unlawfully because it did not go through Congress. Trump reacted with classic fury at the judge and his wife, among others. One piece of his response, though, made news: Trump said that if he couldn’t go through with his plans, he’d walk away. In a social media post, he said he’d instructed the Commerce Department to arrange “a full and complete transfer” of the center to Congressional control. It’s not clear what that means for the staffers facing layoffs or the D.C. residents who used to fill the seats. | | Concert Chaos. In other Trump-related cultural calendar news, the president responded with more fury to the string of artists who pulled out of Great American State Fair concerts. He initially mused on social media about headlining the event himself, then called for canceling it, suggesting a MAGA rally instead. On CNN yesterday, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, whose department oversees the mall, struggled to explain what would be happening. The New York Times reported a White House official saying someone would get fired over the concert planning. | | Amazon Away. Hey, remember when Amazon’s HQ2 was going to be a huge regional economic driver, not to mention an iconic helix-shaped building? Now, the building is on hold and Arlington officials are finalizing a lease to move an alternative high school into an unused part of the Amazon campus. | | More With Less, MPD Edition. A big new study from the centrist Niskanen Center focuses on a D.C. irony: “Since reaching a dramatic peak in 2023, violent and property crime in the District has fallen sharply — even as the police force shrank to its smallest size in half a century.” Interesting nugget: According to the study, the National Guard presence reduced “opportunistic property crime” by 24 percent by adding more eyes on the street — but had no discernible impact on violence. | | Profile Time. The Post ran big campaign season profiles of the two major mayoral candidates. Both pieces sketch candidates’ bios and offer studiously even-handed takeaways. Lewis George “has excited disaffected liberals looking for a change,” but “unsettled some moderates and those in the business class.” McDuffie’s “calibrated ambition, crafted in recognition of the city’s shrinking budgets” pleases some, but his “cautious approach” worries those who’d like to see more aspiration. Cringe moment: McDuffie rejected the label “moderate” — while sitting by a campaign poster that called him moderate. | | Not Afraid to Rank. At a Friday debate among candidates for D.C. Delegate, Kinney Zalesne responded to a question about who else she’d rank on her ballot: She was torn between Brooke Pinto and Trent Holbrook, she said. When the two leading candidates — Pinto and Robert White — didn’t answer the question, Zalesne pounced: “This is so cowardly,” she said. D.C., clearly is still figuring out the politics of ranked-choice balloting. | | Finally: Get ready for a new round of polarizing pizza debates. The Chicago deep-dish favorite Giordano’s is opening a 130-seat restaurant on 14th Street downtown. If you thought the arguments about New Haven pizza were intense, wait until you hear pizza purists go off on the windy city variety. | | Did someone forward you this email? To subscribe, visit https://dc.citycast.fm/newsletter | | Also In the News: | - Some Blue states are mulling 100 percent taxes on payments from Trump’s $1.8 billion “anti weaponization” fund. If the trend reaches the D.C. council, count on fireworks with Congress.
- D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson released the schedule for Tuesday’s legislative session — and, WAMU’s Alex Koma noticed, it doesn’t include emergency legislation for an immediate youth curfew, signaling that the city political impasse over the issue continues.
- A K Street building that was one of the first, and best publicized, of D.C.’s office-to-apartment conversion trend has been sold — and it looks like it won’t be converted after all, the Washington Business Journal reports.
- An escaped emu on the Delmarva peninsula delayed beach traffic en route to Ocean City.
- The Capital Weather Gang has broken off from the Washington Post (and dropped the word “gang”).
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| | What if Washington had an old-school tabloid? Here’s how today might look. For your daily dose, visit DC Tab on Instagram. | | |
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Thanks for reading! If you’re enjoying it, please sign up to be a City Cast member, just like our newest neighbors did: Ashley S., Betsy L., and Ben F., thanks so much! | | Meantime, how are you going to make up your mind in D.C.’s elections? Who would you nominate to play the Great American State Fair? And what do you think of deep-dish pizza? I want to know! Drop me a line at mike.schaffer@citycast.fm. | | Did someone forward you this email? To subscribe, visit https://dc.citycast.fm/newsletter | |
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