About Washingtonian Today
Washingtonian Today is not just another political news roundup. Instead, this daily morning brief provides local context on national news, catches you up on what’s happening at Washingtonian, points you toward super duper awesome things to do around town, and lets you in on some special events going on in-house. Sign up here to receive Washingtonian Today in your inbox every morning.
Should you disturb a public figure outside business hours? That’s one of the questions buzzing around Washington today after MSNBC journalists approached Robert Mueller while he was leaving Easter services in DC yesterday. Should the press have been there? I’ll offer this: News never stops, even when holiday candy is discounted at CVS. Mueller was not in church–he was out in public on a city street. He had no obligation to speak to the reporters, and he mostly did not.
Later this morning the White House will host its annual Easter Egg Roll, and I’m still curious what clothes the infamous larger-than-life Easter Bunny may or may not wear. I call this situation…vest-ghazi. At a loss? Read our story on an unsolved mystery that grew out of Cliff Sims’s tell all.
A Lannister always pays his debts…and, in this case, so do siblings. According to Playboy’s Alex Thomas (and confirmed by the CIA), former CIA deputy director David Cohen (a partner at WilmerHale) appeared on last night’s episode of Game of Thrones. According to Thomas, Cohen got his big break because his brother-in-law David Benioff happens to be one of the program’s co-creators. What is with DC bigwigs and Game of Thrones? After President Trump shared his GoT-inspired “no collusion” graphic last week, I reached out to HBO to ask how it felt about the homage. Its response was, as expected, quite milquetoast: “Though we can understand the enthusiasm for Game of Thrones now that the final season has arrived, we still prefer our intellectual property not be used for political purposes.”
Happy Earth Day! This year, we’re celebrating sustainability by throwing out the inevitable surplus hard-boiled eggs from the weekend. Capital Bikeshare is also free today. Ride, my pretties, ride. I’m your author who never learned how to ride a bike, Brittany Shepherd (bshepherd@washingtonian.com). Noted bike rider Will Peischel (wpeischel@washingtonian.com) contributed reporting today.
Junior varsity blues, continued: Georgetown student Katharine Kimmel is the daughter of Elisabeth Meyer Kimmel, who the government alleges participated in the national college admissions bribery scheme. On a sadly now apparently vanished blog post (fortunately, the Overheard at GW Facebook page has screenshots), Kimmel once recounted a walk she took from Georgetown’s “elegant main gates” to the dusty squalor that is Foggy Bottom. I’m not kidding. The scenery wasn’t the only mark of dilapidation. “The people in the GW seemed more rugged and less fashion-oriented. For example, there were less people wearing Vineyard Vines or Lulu Lemon apparel,” Kimmel wrote. “Due to the fact that GW does not really have a centrally located campus, it seemed as though there was less of a community aspect.”
Driving the day: DC plans to clamp down on drivers who invade bike lanes and will hire a squad of 20 compliance enforcers. The city has already raised the fine for parking in bike lanes to $150. Mayor Muriel Bowser’s budget also includes a quarter of a million dollars to deploy new traffic cameras. The announcement follows the death of longtime bike advocate Dave Salovesh, who was killed on Florida Avenue, Northeast, on Friday. Salovesh was an unrelenting proponent of bike safety—he and others once installed pool noodles on Pennsylvania Avenue to demonstrate that its cycletrack needed barriers to prevent drivers from making U-turns through it. “Bike advocacy will march on,” City Paper cycling columnist Brian McEntee writes in an appreciation of his friend. “It will succeed sometimes, but its success, for me at least, will be far less meaningful without Dave.”
In other news, a Virginia man’s apparent career as a grease grifter was cut short after police say he was arrested and charged with–seriously–grand larceny for stealing hundreds of gallons of used cooking oil from an Annandale Burger King.
I understand that you may be feeling bummed with a case of Mondays. A quick dose of pop songstress Lizzo, who is coming to the 9:30 Club on May 19, might just do the trick. Blame it on her juice.
What we have cooking at Washingtonian:
- Move over Meatball Shop, there’s a new saucey joint in town. Enter Nicoletta Italian Kitchen, which aims to bring a touch of New York to the District.
- Brunch in Bethesda is Instagrammable, I promise.
- Save some money and head to one of several free fitness classes this week. Sorry, SoulCycle.
Our pick for things to do around town:
MUSIC The Atlanta hip-hop collective Dungeon Family got its name from producer Rico Wade‘s studio, the Dungeon, located in the basement of his mom’s house, where some of these musicians made their early recordings.. Catch several of this collective’s big names–including Outkast’s Big Boi and Goodie Mob–on Monday night at the Howard Theatre. $40-$75 in advance or $45-$75 day of show, 9 PM.
Good reads:
Tom Ford and I are not so different after all—we both hate overhead lighting. Take some time to delight yourself in Maureen Dowd’s profile of the designer who thinks Trump should button his jackets more. (New York Times)
Kamala Harris is, unsurprisingly, focusing her efforts on HBCUs! Here’s what the Howard graduate has been up to on the road, according to Juana Summers. (Associated Press)
Primaries are coming, Elizabeth Warren. That’s about where my well of Game of Thrones references runs dry—but not to worry, the presidential hopeful (and apparently HBO subscriber) has fans covered. Here is the Senator’s take (for real!) on the show’s final season, power, and gender. (The Cut)
Big events from Washingtonian:
Sip sip rosé! Join us as we toast to spring at our Rosé Soirée on Thursday, May 16, at Long View Gallery! It will be an evening full of wine from local and national vendors, light bites, and music. Use code sipsiprose for 15 percent off your ticket at washingtonian.com/rose.
An evening under the sea: We’re celebrating the best restaurants in the Washington area at Best of Washington, presented by Lexus, on Thursday, June 6, at the National Building Museum. Tickets are selling fast to the kick-off party of the summer, so get yours today at washingtonian.com/bestof. Want 20 percent off your tickets? Use code bestofbrittany.
Brittany Shepherd covers the societal and cultural scene in political Washington. Before joining Washingtonian as a staff writer in 2018, Brittany was a White House Correspondent for Independent Journal Review. While she has lived in DC for a number of years now, she still yearns for the fresh Long Island bagels of home. Find her on Twitter, often prattling on about Frasier.
