Author Archive for Mike DeBonis

Fenty on WAMU-FM: ‘I’m the One Making the Tough Decisions’

In an appearance this afternoon on WAMU-FM's Politics Hour, Mayor Adrian M. Fenty made as stinging a rebuke to his political ankle-biters as he ever has.
"The difference, I think, between a councilmember and an executive is, you know, I'm the one making the tough decisions," he said in a lively conversation with host Kojo [...]

The State of the District Is…: 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—'Gray Miffed at Fenty Over Missing Budget Details'; 'Did the Office of Campaign Finance Contradict Itself?'; 'Bicyclist Struck Purposely By Motorist in Bloomingdale'; and tweets [...]

Gray Miffed at Fenty Over Missing Budget Details

The rollout of Mayor Adrian M. Fenty's budget proposal has not been without hiccups: Last-minute changes meant budget books had to be reprinted. The books didn't make it to the council until Monday, and fewer than usual arrived. And now D.C. Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray is miffed because a key part of the budget [...]

Did the Office of Campaign Finance Contradict Itself?

The D.C. Office of Campaign Finance had a busy day yesterday, issuing final orders in separate inquiries concerning the D.C. Democratic State Committee and D.C. Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray.
But the inquiries weren't entirely separate. One matter in the Gray probe concerned a fundraising letter he sent to Comcast in 20008 seeking a $20,000 donation [...]

Bicyclist Struck Purposely By Motorist in Bloomingdale

From the Bike Washington listserv via WashCycle blog:
I unfortunately had the awful experience of being hit by a car on my commute home this evening. The details are as follows: Around 5:50 PM I was riding along First St. NW with other commuters. We crossed over Florida Ave and a car came in behind me, [...]

A Closer Look at the Teacher Contract: 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—'Vincent Gray Inquiry Finds No Wrongdoing'; 'Local Dems Fined $18K for Convention Fundraising Misdeeds'; and tweets galore!
IN LL WEEKLY—Dare to Compare: Is Fenty vs. Gray [...]

Local Dems Fined $18K for Convention Fundraising Misdeeds

City campaign regulators have had their hands full lately: Not only did the Office of Campaign Finance release its inquiry into Vincent Gray's affairs, but the agency also today issued a final order on the ongoing travails of the D.C. Democratic State Committee.
The local Democratic party organ has been under the OCF spyglass since questions [...]

Vincent Gray Inquiry Finds No Wrongdoing

UPDATED 5:45 P.M.
The Office of Campaign Finance, after reviewing allegations aired late last year concerning D.C. Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray, has dismissed complaints against the now-mayoral-candidate.

At Last: The D.C. Complaints Choir

It started in Helsinki. It swept Europe. And now, thanks to Voices of Washington, it's here.

DCPS Teacher Contract Is Unveiled: 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—'DCPS Teacher Contract to Be Unveiled; Big Raises Funded By $65M in Private Money'; 'Behold the Mayoral Abs'; 'First Funeral Service for Mass Shooting Victim [...]

DCPS Teacher Contract to Be Unveiled; Big Raises Funded By $65M in Private Money

UPDATED 7 P.M.
The D.C. Public Schools and the Washington Teachers' Union are set to unveil their long-awaited contract proposal, bringing to a close negotiations that have dragged on for the duration of Chancellor Michelle Rhee's tenure.
An announcement could come as soon as tomorrow, debuting an agreement that would offer city teachers significant raises plus [...]

Behold the Mayoral Abs

Mayor Adrian M. Fenty is delivering his State of the District address later this week. But for those inquiring about the state of the mayoral six-pack, behold:

Judge Deals Blow to Nickles Strategy: 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—'Hill Rag: Skinner's Firm Hired Out Survey Work, Pocketed Markup'; 'Kelvin Robinson Pondering Entrance to Council Race'; 'Judge Upholds Federal Oversight Of CFSA, Holds Fenty [...]

Kelvin Robinson Pondering Entrance to Council Race

The at-large council race stands to get still more interesting: Kelvin Robinson, former chief of staff to Mayor Anthony A. Williams, is pondering an entry to the at-large D.C. Council race.
"I've had a lot of conversations," Robinson told LL last week. "It is something I am considering very seriously."
Robinson eased back into public life last [...]

Hill Rag: Skinner’s Firm Hired Out Survey Work, Pocketed Markup

As teased in this morning's LL Daily, there's a very important story in a not very Web-accessible place. That would be the Hill Rag, which has a story in this month's issue detailing how Mayor Adrian M. Fenty's parks contracting scheme benefited friend Sinclair Skinner (pictured) to the tune of "hundreds of thousands of dollars" [...]