Good morning. Snow! The National Weather Service says it should start falling in earnest after 1 PM. A low of 30 tonight as the snow continues to fall. We could see six inches! Hope you like your kids, because they’re going to be around a lot. The Capitals are the only NHL team with no players in the 4 Nations Face-Off, so they’re off until February 22. You can find me on Bluesky, I’m @abeaujon.87 on Signal, and there’s a link to my email address at the bottom of this post.
I can’t stop listening to:
Mdou Moctar, “Funeral for Justice (Injustice Version).” The Tuareg guitarist’s live shows are typically high-octane events where he coaxes improbable howls from his Stratocaster while his band hypnotizes you with swirling rhythms. This tune is from his forthcoming LP, “Tears of Injustice,” an all-acoustic reimagining of last year’s epic “Funeral For Justice,” and it’s powerful in a different way. Mdou Moctar plays the Birchmere tonight.
Here’s some administration news you might have blocked out:
Arts administrator in chief: President Trump announced he would install Richard Grenell as the Kennedy Center’s interim executive director yesterday. The Kennedy Center doesn’t have an executive director position, so it’s not totally clear what this means for its current leadership. (Washington Post) Bob Mondello tracked down the “drag shows” that Trump appears exercised about. (NPR)
• Trump also plans an executive order about DC that would direct homeless encampments to be cleared, among other ideas. (Washington Post)
The action in the courts: A judge further extended a pause on the deadline for feds to accept Trump and Elon Musk‘s “deferred resignation”/buyout offer. (CNN) Another judge said the administration had defied his order to un-freeze federal grants. (NYT) Yet another judge blocked the administration from slashing health research grants in states that sued. (Politico) And ANOTHER judge said the FBI must release more information about Trump’s classified documents case. (Politico)
Musk-see TV: A profile of Musk lieutenant Steve Davis. (WSJ) FLASHBACK: “The Mr. Yogato Guy Is Helping Run Elon Musk’s DOGE,” by Jessica Sidman. (Washingtonian) “A 19-year-old acolyte of Elon Musk known online as ‘Big Balls’ has taken on new roles as a senior adviser at the State Department and at the Department of Homeland Security.” (Washington Post) Republicans are privately grumbling about the billionaire’s adventures in Washington. (The Bulwark) Meanwhile: Musk is trying to buy OpenAI. (NYT)
More pardons: NYC Mayor Eric Adams appears to be out of hot water. (Fox News) Trump also plans to pardon Rod Blagojevich. (Axios)
People in the news: Trump cashiered David Huitema, head of the Office of Government Ethics. (CNN) Administration appointee Darren Beattie has “repeatedly voiced support for mass sterilization of ‘low-IQ trash.'” (NOTUS)
• Trump also paused enforcement of a “nearly half-century-old law that prohibits American companies and foreign firms from bribing officials of foreign governments to obtain or retain business.” (CNBC)
Remember Democrats? Party bigs, including Hakeem Jeffries, will join a rally for the civil service at noon today.
• Nancy Mace took to the House floor last night, where she “accused her former fiancé and three other men of having drugged and raped her and other women, and of filming and taking lewd photographs of women and underage girls without their consent.” (NYT)
• Some Danes hope to buy California. (KTLA)
See some indie films this week! By Daniella Byck
If you feel like being transported to another time, place, or even dimension, a movie could be a temporary fix. The DC Independent Film Forum starts on Wednesday, February 12, with showings of more than 60 independent films through Monday, February 17. Head to Regal Gallery Place to watch a range of works, from a dramatic feature about space tourism gone wrong to an animated short about a hippopotamus’s dream (seriously). Beyond the screenings, movie-goers can participate in discussions and seminars with the filmmakers. Buy tickets here.
Recently on Washingtonian dot com:
• Poplar, a new neighborhood restaurant in Brightwood Park, is deliberately snug, small, and local.
• Romantic hotel deals for Valentine’s Day. (Which is Friday!)
• “Honestly, I just couldn’t do another Hinge date”: Savannah Quinn Crowder talks about why she went on “The Bachelor.”
• The National Gallery of Art’s Gallery Nights program starts Thursday. Here’s how you can try to score tickets for the always popular events.
Local news links:
• Booz Allen Hamilton has withdrawn as a sponsor of WorldPride 2025 because of Trump’s campaign against DEI. (WBJ)
• Richmond is encouraging laid-off federal workers to move south. (Aaron Wiener)
• Speaking of Richmond, Universal Pictures shelved “Golden,” the Michel Gondry-directed musical about Pharrell Williams that was largely filmed there. (Variety)
• Navy Yard was not a traffic nightmare yesterday because a lot of people took public transit. (Washington Post)
• Tom Goldstein was re-arrested yesterday. A judge said he was a flight risk. (Reuters)
• “A Sterling teacher’s assistant has been arrested for public intoxication while on campus.” (WUSA 9)
• A Stafford County man was convicted for punching a fellow airplane passenger in the face. (DC News Now)
• “They have moved into our area to stay and we need to learn to live with them.” No, not MAGAs: coyotes! (ARLnow)
Tuesday’s event picks, by Briana Thomas:
Signature Theatre’s upbeat production of Lin-Manuel Miranda‘s and Quiara Alegría Hudes‘s “In the Heights” opens today and runs through May 4.
Visions of Freedom: A Black Film Festival opens at Howard University.
The National Symphony Orchestra plays Mozart and Beethoven hymns at Mount Vernon.
See more of Briana’s picks here.
Did you miss our 100 Very Best Restaurants List? It’s here. If you love your workplace, now’s your chance to nominate it for Washingtonian’s next Great Places to Work contest. Register here to get the ball rolling.
Tuesday. Let’s go.
Andrew Beaujon joined Washingtonian in late 2014. He was previously with the Poynter Institute, TBD.com, and Washington City Paper. He lives in Del Ray.
