The time has almost come for Mayor Adrian M. Fenty's annual birthday spectacle.

Two years ago, Fenty threw a grand, open-door party at the Washington Convention Center. A year ago, Fenty kicked off his re-election campaign with a massive fete at the Forest Hills home of local developer Chris Donatelli. This year, for Hizzoner's 39th, the birthday bash/campaign fundraiser will also take place at a tony, oversized residence. This one, however, isn't occupied by any developer.

In fact, it's vacant. The Dec. 5 event will be held at 1821 Hoban Road NW, a 7,000-square-foot, six-bedroom model home built as part of the Residences at 1801 Foxhall, a development of 27 single-family homes in the upscale Ward 3 neighborhood.

Read More "Fenty’s 39th Birthday Bash Set for Old Mayoral Mansion Site" »

Stories broke this morning in the Los Angeles Times and in the Examiner reporting that D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee took an active role in investigations of her fiance, Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson.

Allow LL to explicate a little more fully what this is and what Rhee is alleged to have done.

Read More "What Was Michelle Rhee’s ‘Damage Control’ for Kevin Johnson?" »

As much local politics as humanly possible. Send your tips, releases, stories, events, etc. to lips@washingtoncitypaper.com. And get LL Daily sent straight to your inbox every morning!

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT---"Sullivan to Nickles: 'You're Playing Games With The Wrong Judge'"; "Ximena Hartsock Headed to Youth Trust?"; "Pershing Park Case: Patterson Hopes District Has Learned Its Lesson"; tweets galore!

Greetings all. A congressional report connects Michelle Rhee to unsavory personal accusations involving her now-fiance, Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson. KJ has been accused of sexual misconduct with young women, and Examiner columnist Byron York writes that Rhee, while serving on the board of Johnson's St. Hope nonprofit, 'learned of the allegations and played the role of a fixer, doing "damage control"' for Johnson. A former St. Hope employee says 'that Rhee told her that "she was making this her number one priority, and she would take care of the situation." A short time later, the employee learned that the girl who had complained about Johnson had received a visit from Johnson's personal attorney.' Allegations against Johnson and St. Hope were first leveled by AmeriCorps' inspector general, who referred the matter to federal prosecutors in California. The L.A. Times reports that Rhee had 'several conversations' with the IG 'in which she made the case for Johnson and the school he ran in Sacramento...[saying] he was "a good guy."' As part of a settlement with St. Hope, the sexual misconduct allegations were not addressed, and the IG was fired by the Obama administration in June. The LAT story notes that Rhee's 'role in the incident may have repercussions among city officials in Washington, where she has developed the profile of a contentious and controversial schools chief.'

AFTER THE JUMP---WaPo ed board calls for probe of Gray allegations; ex-official's name appears in court docs filed in taxi bribery case; Fenty's swim habits spark Wilson pool controversy; council, Catholics explore compromise; DISB changes birth-control policy for insurers; Fenty airplane pitch leads to possible move for Bethesda company; report says UDC should spin off community college

Read More "Rhee Got Involved in KJ’s Personal Mess: Loose Lips Daily" »

Whither Ximena Hartsock?

The soon-to-be-ex-director of the city parks and recreation department might have been rejected by the D.C. Council, but Mayor Adrian M. Fenty has made no bones about declaring Hartsock to be a model municipal administrator deserving of continued government employment.

And yet, the confirmation battle has soured relations between Hartsock and several councilmembers, making any appointment to a council-confirmed post a futile exercise. But a solution may exist.

The rumblings are this: Hartsock's next stop in municipal government is likely to be as chief executive of the Children and Youth Investment Trust Corp. That is a quasi-governmental nonprofit that partners public and private entities to fund and oversee various youth programs. Crucially, the president/CEO post is appointed solely by the nonprofit's board.

Read More "Ximena Hartsock Headed to Youth Trust?" »

As much local politics as humanly possible. Send your tips, releases, stories, events, etc. to lips@washingtoncitypaper.com. And get LL Daily sent straight to your inbox every morning!

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT---"The Vincent Gray Home Improvement Invoices"; "Vincent Gray Calls Misconduct Allegations 'Clearly Political'"; "Affidavit: Ramsey Ordered Pershing Park Arrests"; "Jim Graham's New Logo Embraces Sartorial Trademark"; tweets galore!

IN LL WEEKLY---All Bets Are Off: The lottery contract saga goes on. Also: Fired DPR employees claim the stats were juked to force layoff.

Greetings all. LL realizes the drip-drip-drip of recent news related to the 2002 Pershing Park arrests must be making his readers' eyes glaze over at this point, but a rather momentous allegation surfaced yesterday in federal court: A D.C. cop has said in a sworn statement that he heard then Police Chief Charles Ramsey order the illegal arrests, saying, 'We're going to lock them up and teach them a lesson.' WCP's Jason Cherkis notes that Ramsey 'repeatedly stated in depositions that he had not ordered the mass arrest of approximately 400 people during the Sept. 27, 2002, World Bank/IMF protests.' The cop, Detective Paul Hustler, 'states in his affidavit that officers were ordered to funnel people into the park' and that he 'was standing near Ramsey and various police officials at the time' that the order was given. As troubling here is the cover-up: The city has sought to bar Hustler from giving a deposition; federal Judge Emmet Sullivan has ordered it to go forward, with U.S. Marshals or a magistrate judge in the room to make sure city lawyers don't unduly interfere. Also Jordan Weissmann at Legal Times and Del Wilber in WaPo, Scott McCabe in Examiner, and AP. Ramsey's lawyer, Mark Tuohey, says 'Hustler's comments might not be accurate and prove only that the detective overheard a conversation.'

AFTER THE JUMP---Vince Gray starts answering questions about home renos, DNC fundraising; Chaffetz asks city honchos about feuding; Fenty tries to sneak in People's Counsel nominee; Examiner editorial board not Fenty fans; Rhee gets WSJ ink; JBG lawsuit persists

Read More "‘Teach Them a Lesson,’ Said Top Cop: Loose Lips Daily" »

Earlier this evening, in his wrapup of D.C. Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray's televised response to allegation of misconduct, LL asked, among other things: Would Gray provide invoices for work done on his home by a subsidiary of megadeveloper William C. Smith & Co.?

To Gray's credit, he has [PDF].

The documents include a consolidated invoice issued by WCS Construction, the Smith Co. subsidiary, plus invoices from four subcontractors. The combined invoice was sent on Oct. 30; the first of the subinvoices was sent on July 30, the last on Oct. 28.

What do the documents mean? LL knows little of the contracting realm, so how about a little crowdsourcing? Have a look at the PDF above or image links after the jump, and let LL know if you see any matters that deserve further scrutiny.

Read More "The Vincent Gray Home Improvement Invoices" »

Ward 1 Councilmember Jim Graham today kicked off his re-election campaign. That involved launching a new Web site---complete with oodles of listed accomplishments, a YouTube video, and...a new logo.

Notice any familiar accouterments?

D.C. Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray this afternoon described the motivation behind a pair of stories alleging improprieties on his part as being "clearly political."

The first, and more serious, story was penned by Jeffrey Anderson in this morning's Washington Times. It detailed various small jobs done on Gray's home by William C. Smith & Co., the politically powerful local development company. The second, a Washington Post story by Tim Craig, involved his use of council stationery to ask Comcast for a $20,000 donation to the local delegation to the Democratic State Committee. Gray addressed the controversies in an afternoon appearance on NewsChannel 8's NewsTalk With Bruce DePuyt.

Regarding the DNC allegations, Gray made the case that the fundraising effort was focused on voting-rights awareness, and thus kosher. Given that the check benefited local Democrats attending a political convention, it's awfully questionable distinction to make. But he gets points for this realization: "'If I had to do it over again, I certainly wouldn't have used the stationery."

As for the work on his Hillcrest home, Gray insisted "there was no impropriety that was involved."

Read More "Vincent Gray Calls Misconduct Allegations ‘Clearly Political’" »

As much local politics as humanly possible. Send your tips, releases, stories, events, etc. to lips@washingtoncitypaper.com. And get LL Daily sent straight to your inbox every morning!

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT---"Elections Board Rejects D.C. Gay Marriage Initiative"; "Traci Hughes Is Out As Police Spokesperson"; "Gay Marriage Debate: Another Reason to Ditch Employer-Based Health Care!"; tweets galore!

Morning all. Two ugly headlines today for Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray. For one, he's been pulled into the D.C. Democratic State Committee's financial mess: Tim Craig reports in WaPo that Gray, on council stationery, sent a fundraising appeal to Comcast for last year's Democratioc National Convention. He asked government affair rep Kathy Etemad Hollinger for $20,000 to finance 'voting rights' activities. Local Democrats ended up getting $10K from Comcast, plus $5K from a cable PAC. (Hollinger, incidentally, is now Mayor Adrian M. Fenty's chief of film and TV development.) Gray tells Craig that he was just 'trying to be helpful.' More serious are the Ted Stevens-esque allegations in WaTimes by reporter Jeffrey Anderson that megadeveloper William C. Smith & Co. did work on Gray's Hillcrest home. 'In an interview in his city hall office Monday, Mr. Gray at first denied that the company did any work for him, aside from arranging for an architect to design a renovation that he said has yet to commence. Later in the day, a spokeswoman called back to say that the company repaired a door to the roof of Mr. Gray's 2,800-square-foot home and installed a lock on his iron gate and exterior floodlights.' The company, which typically doesn't do home renovations, was paid more than $10,000---but only 'after The Washington Times began asking employees of William C. Smith & Co. about the work, and a month after the paper filed a Freedom of Information Act request seeking permits on the property.' No permits were issued, either. Gray's explanation: 'I have known Chris Smith a long time, I know the quality of the work....I don't want to sound holier than thou, but I take my integrity very seriously.'

AFTER THE JUMP---BOEE tells marriage initiative supporters to tell it to the judge; Harry Jackson gets the WaPo Style treatment; L.A. Times' editorial board more supportive of D.C. lawmakers than WaPo's; accused child murderer was called 'psychopath'; CSX tunnel work brings out Hill NIMBYs; Durso leaving Hotel Association; Santos is a big boxing fan

Read More "Vince Gray’s Very Bad News Day: Loose Lips Daily" »

In a wholly expected move, the Board of Elections and Ethics today released a decision rejecting a proposed ballot measure that aims to prohibit same-sex marriages.

The initiative, sponsored by a group including Bishop Harry Jackson, the Rev. Walter E. Fauntroy, ANC member Bob King, and others, would establish that "only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in the District of Columbia."

The rationale for the board's decision, according to a press release, is such: "Under current law, the District recognizes as valid same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions. The Board concludes that that Marriage Initiative of 2009 would, if passed, strip same-sex couples who have entered into such marriages of rights afforded to them by that recognition." And that would authorize discrimination prohibited under the District of Columbia Human Rights Act.

Hence, no vote. You can read the board's decision in full [PDF]. The initiative's sponsors can appeal to the D.C. Superior Court (which rejected an earlier attempt at a gay marriage referendum), and on to the D.C. Court of Appeals.

Says board chair Errol Arthur in a statement: "We have considered all of the testimony presented to the Board and understand the desire to place this question on the ballot....However, the laws of the District of Columbia preclude us from allowing this initiative to move forward."

Today, the D.C. Council sent a bill legalizing gay marriages in the District to the full council for a Dec. 1 vote. And during committee discussion today, there seemed to be little willingness to compromise on the ancillary issue of the day: whether the bill would cause the Catholic Archdiocese of Washington to withdraw from social service programs.

The archdiocese's issue seems to come down to two issues: adoptions to same-sex couples (which are already legal, as it happens), and mandated employee benefits for same-sex spouses of archdiocese employees.

As WaPo's Tim Craig reports, neither of the bill main sponsors, Phil Mendelson or David Catania, are budging on the issue. Said Mendo: "The way this issue has been approached by the archdiocese in the past week was tantamount to drawing a line in the sand and it may be hard for them to show some flexibility." Catania went on to ask how the archdiocese could give employee benefits to "fornicators and adulterers" but not gay couples.

LL's quick thought: Isn't this yet another argument for abandoning the already problematic employer-based health insurance model? Why should the institutional policies of an employer, subject to religious/moral/political dealings, affect the well-being of employees and their families?

Discuss.

As much local politics as humanly possible. Send your tips, releases, stories, events, etc. to lips@washingtoncitypaper.com. And get LL Daily sent straight to your inbox every morning!

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT---"Nickles Attempts To Prevent Detective From Testifying"; "Blade Staff to Launch New Publication"; tweets galore---including live coverage of yesterday's council hearings

Morning all. The Washington Blade, what legendary activist Frank Kameny calls 'the voice of record for the gay community,' is closed---temporarily, all hope. The paper's owner, Window Media, succumbed to crushing debt, and then yesterday 'nearly two-dozen employees arrived at their downtown offices Monday to start a new workweek, only to be ordered to clear out their desks by midafternoon,' according to Paul Schwartzman's WaPo A1 requiem. He adds: 'The Blade's closing comes at a moment of extraordinary optimism for many gays in Washington. The big story [Lou Chibbaro Jr.] and the paper's other writers have been covering is the bill supported by nearly all of the D.C. Council's members that would legalize same-sex marriage in the city.' But Blade writers, as WCP reports, are planning a new venture. And hey: Eleanor Holmes Norton, calling the Blade a 'weekly must-read,' pledges her support to any successor publication. Also WaTimes, WBJ, WTOP, WRC-TV, WUSA-TV.

AFTER THE JUMP---Man arrested in 9-year-old's murder; another council contracts hearing, another round of executive no-shows; Catania threatens DOH officials with weekly HIV/AIDS hearings; remembering Oscar; man, in apparent suicide, becomes year's 22nd Metro death; the bag tax is almost here---Safeway and CVS have free reusable bags for you!

Read More "Blade Feels the Deepest Cut: Loose Lips Daily" »

As much local politics as humanly possible. Send your tips, releases, stories, events, etc. to lips@washingtoncitypaper.com. And get LL Daily sent straight to your inbox every morning!

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT---"D.C. Democrats Not Off the Hook, Say Finance Officials"; "The Friday Limerick Review"; tweets galore!

FLASH---The Washington Blade is reported to have closed. Check City Desk for updates!

Morning all. This weekend saw the year's penultimate All Hands on Deck for city police---a program that continues in spite of an arbitrator's ruling ending it, as Theola Labbé-DeBose reported Saturday in WaPo. Sadly, the enhanced deployment of officers failed to stop the violence in city neighborhoods. On Saturday night, a bullet ripped through the door of a Columbia Heights apartment and killed 9-year-old Oscar Fuentes. Just before 10 p.m., WaPo reports, 'the boy's family had rushed into the apartment to avoid an attempted robbery. The assailant, the sources said, fired through the door hitting the boy.' Says one neighbor in today's WaPo followup, 'We have a chronic problem in the neighborhood with these gangs. It's not okay for them to just come in and shoot people.' The building at 1433 Columbia Road NW, Examiner reports, 'reeks of urine and lacks a lock on the front door and even a doorknob, letting all types of problems inside. On Sunday afternoon, no one answered the door at Oscar's apartment. A hole less than a centimeter in diameter was visible in the door. It cut cleanly through at an angle, about a foot above the doorknob. The hallway showed no other signs that a crime had occurred. A Happy Birthday sign hung above the door of the apartment next door.' May the 'assailant'---much too kind of a term---be brought to justice swiftly. Also NC8, WRC-TV, WUSA-TV, WTTG-TV.

AFTER THE JUMP---Rhee says she's to blame if Fenty can't get re-elected; WaTimes does the full foundering-Fenty treatment; neighborhoods still want their parks, contracts be damned; FBI's Persichini calls it quits; feds get serious about regulating transit; lots more on Catholic gay marriage conflict

Read More "A Child Dies in Columbia Heights: Loose Lips Daily" »

In recent months, the D.C. Democratic State Committee has come under the disapproving glare of city campaign finance officials. That glare remains trained on the local Democratic umbrella organization.

According to an interim audit report released Monday, the city campaign finance office did not accept explanations offered by DCDSC officials for fundraising irregularities. Audit officials maintain that the committee needs to return some $37,000 to donors, and it may be subject to fines.

At issue was lax reporting of receipts and expenditures by the DCDSC, but more importantly questionable practices in fundraising for last year's Democratic National Convention.

Top DCDSC honchos, including chair Anita Bonds, set up a separate organization to raise funds for the District's DNC delegation. But they did so in some instances by invoking the name and authority of the DCDSC itself, raising issues as to whether the fundraising was subject to city contribution limits and disclosure regulations.

Read More "D.C. Democrats Not Off the Hook, Say Finance Officials" »

As much local politics as humanly possible. Send your tips, releases, stories, events, etc. to lips@washingtoncitypaper.com. And get LL Daily sent straight to your inbox every morning!

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT---"Pershing Park Case: Council Hearings Unlikely"; "David Catania Smacks Down Anti-Gay-Marriage Law Prof"; "WTOP's Mark Segraves to Get TV Show"; "Is Adrian Fenty Exercising Too Much?"; tweets galore!

Morning all. The Archdiocese of Washington is playing hardball, holding that the District's gay marriage bill, as currently written, threatens to end their involvement in various city services. And the D.C. Council has swung right back. In second-day story, WaPo reporters write that councilmembers are 'hardening their opposition' to the archdiocese, 'setting up a political showdown between the city and one of its largest social service providers.' Says Tommy Wells: 'It's a dangerous thing when the Catholic Church starts writing and determining the legislation and the laws of the District of Columbia.' No CM is acting conciliatory at the moment, and the archdiocese is trying to draw a semantic distinction: that the District is 'giving the ultimatum,' not the church. But WaPo columnist Petula Dvorak isn't buying it: 'By trying to play political hardball with the District, no matter how carefully they word their objection to the bill, officials at the Archdiocese of Washington and Catholic Charities are telling our city's most vulnerable people---homeless families, sick children, low-income mothers---that they are willing to throw them on the table as a bargaining chip. What the Church is doing is an uncharitable and cruel maneuver.' Still yet to enter the debate: Archbishop Donald W. Wuerl. Also Examiner, NYT, WaPo blog, WaPo chat, WaTimes, LAT blog, NC8, WRC-TV, WTTG-TV, World mag, Atlantic, TPM, lots more.

AFTER THE JUMP---More on the fate of Hardy MS; Harold Brazil sues tattoo shop whose floor he soiled; movie tax pondered to fund arts groups; murdered Rawlings brother said to be implicated in Halloween killing; D.C. Jail to join federal immigration-check program

Read More "The Archdiocese Plays Hardball: Loose Lips Daily" »