The action that generated that "political hot potato" in the D.C. Council was carried out by Eric Payne, The Office of the Chief Financial Officer, and he was fired. Was it for his mocked up paperwork he provided the council that made no sense at all?  (Who put him up to all of that mess....I mean his mocked up mess, misleading statements, secrets, vagueness, etc.)  Then, apparently the "mayor" had to do something that shifted the attention away from his biz-as-usual unsavory political behavior. It certainly seems hizoner has mastered the art of awarding his college cronies and reformed drug-dealing associates favors in many different forms.  Is that the same as "political patronage", a term Daryl Wiggins threw out as you reported.

Add in the shenanigans of the embarrassing "business" practices and what you call a "politically connected businessman" (and college frat bro to AD).....Warren Williams Jr. Wait, that sounds familiar.  Didn't you call P. Leonard Manning a "politically connected businessman" also?  Myth or fact?

Loose Lips continues:  "In the middle of all of that mishegoss, LTE was fined $1.4 million by the D.C. government for a massive security breach in 2006 that led to tens of thousands of dollars in ticket fraud." 
By omission, by omission, by omission....what is the rest of this story?  Is it just too much work to go to the accurate sources and publish something specific and worthy of our time.  How about the truth....is that too boring?  Seeds of doubt are planted, watered and fertilized and a big giant myth is created that wholly discredits the facts.

Your most recent blog, as of  June 26TH, has the facts stated wrong again.  I see you have figured out those myths by now.  Maybe it was just bad information and too obvious to go uncorrected this time.  Scientific Games did not submit a bid?

Oh, and here we go again....not Intralot, but GTech bending way over with their choice in Daryl Wiggins.  Come on, the man fixes and resells copy machines...."Digi Doc" or is it "Document Managers?"   How many companies and contracts does he have and where are they coming from?

That certainly puts him on a par with a company that has a career record of successfully running the D.C. lottery for 26 years now, doesn't it?  Remember, they started in 1983 with one three-digit game, The Daily Numbers game, and zero sales.  They endured and ascended to the present volume of $250 million a year. 

What about the quotes from Mr. Wiggins, “What we do is management of digital technology in the field.  I manage digital technology in the field…It can be a lottery or it can be a deposition.” 
Interesting rhetoric! According to his website, they are a copy service and copy machine/printer repair house for businesses around D.C.

His statement brings up another myth looming: doesn't the current operator just repair terminals similar to how one repairs printers and copy machines? 

No, they participate in game design, marketing, all aspects of digital and analog lottery operations,maintenance, and administration. They serve as the integral liaison between four often challenging elements:  the vendor, the lottery, the Office of the Chief Financial Officer, and the commune of Washington D.C. politics. 
Hm mm, and how many mayors and lottery directors have they seen come and go? 

Not sure where you are going with all of this up to the minute reporting on D.C. Lottery news, but would like to encourage you to stay honest, factual, and fair.  As a wordsmith, you have the power to shape and/or break an individual's character.

There have been many unkind and unfair words written, spoken, and eventually believed by some, regarding the current operators of the D.C. Lottery contract over the last three years.  They have been bashed,  bruised, and prejudiced against. Is this attributable to two of the seven deadly sins at work here: greed and envy?   The facts, just beneath the superficial and the glut of phoniness, evidence greed and envy contained within individuals in politically powerful positions. 

Some brave soul (like you) ought to try and even the score and do a piece on the current D.C. Lottery contract operators.  The facts display two fully-committed professional lottery gurus. They have a proven career record of being genuinely hard-working, honest and respectable gentlemen....both devoted and loyal in their responsibilities for the
success of the Lottery, the good of the District-their community, and to their families. 

It's all there in the historical facts of the D.C. Lottery and the lives of these two men. 

There is something to be honored and celebrated in that. 

Looks like the winner is TBD, my money is on trashing this popularity contest and starting over.