Blog Profile / DeBonis
| URL : | http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/mike-debonis | |
|---|---|---|
| Filed Under: | United States / Washington D.C. | |
| Posts on Regator: | 1616 | |
| Posts / Week: | 14.8 | |
| Archived Since: | April 20, 2011 | |
Blog Post Archive
At first mayoral fundraiser, Muriel Bowser takes shot at primary date change
Hail, hail, the gang was all there. The crowd of at least 200 that swarmed inaugural fundraiser for D.C. Council member Muriel Bowser’s mayoral campaign Thursday evening was, not surprisingly, heavy on backers of former mayor Adrian M. Fenty — starting … Continue reading ?
Vincent Orange gets ethics sanction
D.C. Council member Vincent Orange (D-At-Large) has the distinction of becoming the first D.C. public official to be formally admonished by the District’s new ethics board. In a “negotiated disposition,” Orange admitted to breaching the council’s Code of Conduct by intervening in … Continue reading ?
City: ‘Fake weed’ will turn you into a zombie
A new D.C. government education campaign is telling city youth that using “synthetic marijuana” products will turn them into zombies, “Night of the Living Dead”-style. The campaign, sponsored by the D.C. Department of Health, includes print and broadcast ads, billboards, … Continue reading ?
Mayor Gray unveils immigrant license push to some grumbles
A crowd of more than 150 people packed a John A. Wilson Building briefing room Thursday to hear Mayor Vincent C. Gray unveil his proposal to allow illegal immigrants to apply for District driver’s licenses. Gray certainly won plaudits galore … Continue reading ?
What ‘DC Reads’ this year is up to you
The D.C. Public Library is renewing its annual “DC Reads” event later this year — highlighting one book for citywide reading and discussion — and you have less than 48 hours to weigh in on which book will be read. This year’s … Continue reading ?
D.C. schools’ declining budgets
D.C. Public Schools Chancellor Kaya Henderson will appear before the D.C. Council’s education committee Thursday, where she will face tough questions about her budget decisions for the next school year. As Emma Brown reports in the Post, many schools will have … Continue reading ?
Acting CFO bill is signed, but Gandhi will stay on
President Obama Wednesday signed the District of Columbia Chief Financial Officer Vacancy Act, a piece of legislation that fixes a hole in the D.C. charter language establishing the CFO’s office. Before today, there was no provision for appointing an acting CFO … Continue reading ?
David Catania’s education reform 2.0
Four months into his chairmanship of the D.C. Council’s education committee, David Catania (I-At Large) already has big ideas about how to take school reform in the District to a new level. Rather than dicker with standardized testing or teacher … Continue reading ?
Gray pulls nomination of controversial former AIDS official
Mayor Vincent C. Gray has withdrawn the nomination of a controversial former District health official to a city board dealing with ex-offender policies. Gray tapped Debra G. Rowe in January for the Commission on Re-Entry and Returning Citizen Affairs, established … Continue reading ?
Thrive Health Plan approved as Medicaid contractor
A brand-new health-care firm won the D.C. Council’s approval Tuesday to do $542 million in Medicaid business with the city, but not before a legislator accused one of the company’s owners of committing perjury by not making required disclosures to … Continue reading ?
D.C. taxis, now with nifty stripe
Now that city leaders have decided that all District taxis should eventually look the same, the question is, how should they look? The initial decision, a intricate but memorable scheme, backfired when most of the proposed designs were memorable mainly for being … Continue reading ?
D.C. primary election date could be moved again
With less than a year remaining until the District’s 2014 primary election, some lawmakers are proposing to move it back more than two months. D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson said Monday that he expects to introduce legislation as soon as … Continue reading ?
The D.C. Council election results, in maps
The D.C. Board of Elections on Friday made available a raw table of last Tuesday’s special election voting results, making it easier to drill down into the results. The maps below show few surprises, but they visualize just how dominant … Continue reading ?
One department, two arson rates
Something notable has been happening in the D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services department: Its fire investigators, according to data the department provided recently to the Office of the City Administrator and the D.C. Council, are closing arson cases at … Continue reading ?
Teenagers these days
Who better to weigh in on the District’s quest for budgetary freedom than a distinguished member of that paragon of fiscal rectitude, the United States Congress? When WTTG-TV’s Matt Ackland asked Rep. John L. Mica (R-Fla.) Thursday about the District’s budget autonomy … Continue reading ?
D.C. takes a small step toward municipal composting
In slightly belated observance of Earth Day, Mayor Vincent C. Gray sought Wednesday to highlight progress his administration has made on his sweeping “Sustainable D.C.” strategy. Among the most intriguing initiatives: A small step toward a municipal composting program. Since April … Continue reading ?
Plan coming for unpaid Chartered Health claims, Gray says
Not quite a week after it was announced that D.C. Chartered Health Plan could owe tens of millions more than previously anticipated to city health-care providers, Mayor Vincent C. Gray said Thursday his administration is “developing a plan to provide … Continue reading ?
Whither the D.C. GOP?
The election’s over, which means it’s time for recriminations. First up: The D.C. Republican Party, which saw its best hopes in a decade of electing one of its own to the D.C. Council vanish with Patrick Mara’s third-place finish. Less than … Continue reading ?
Patrick Mara campaign suffered ‘total collapse,’ D.C. GOP chair says
About a half-hour before polls closed Tuesday, D.C. Republican Party Chairman Ron Phillips sent a tweet: “DC Republican Party went all in - all our chips are in the middle of the table - We shall see who wins!” Four hours later … Continue reading ?
Anita Bonds, council member in full
After an Election Day that saw expectedly dismal turnout, Anita Bonds will remain an at-large D.C. Council member for at least another 20 months. Bonds won with one-third of the vote, securing victory by locking up votes in the city’s eastern half … Continue reading ?