Good morning. Welcome to fall, and Shanah Tovah to those who will observe Rosh Hashanah when it begins this evening. Mostly sunny with a high around 80 today. The temperature will fall to around 64 overnight. The Nationals will visit the Braves today. The Commanders played without Jayden Daniels and still administered a 41-24 thrashing to the Raiders yesterday, and the Capitals beat Boston handily in a preseason tilt last night. You can find me on Bluesky, I’m @abeaujon.87 on Signal, and there’s a link to my email address below.
Nominations for next year’s 500 Most Influential People list have opened. We’re looking for folks outside the government who are playing big roles in Washington’s policy debates. (Here’s last year’s list.) Please, David Catanese implores you, read the rules before you submit! Also: If you know a local hero, nominate them to join our next class of Washingtonians of the Year. We’re looking for anyone who makes our area a better place. Nominations are due by September 30.
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I can’t stop listening to:
Tune-Yards, “Gangsta.” It is Monday, and thus an excellent day for beautifully layered weirdo pop. Tune-Yards play the Howard Theatre tonight with Tre. Charles.
Take Washingtonian Today with you! I’ve made a playlist on Spotify and on Apple Music of my daily music recommendations this year.
Here’s some administration news you might have blocked out:
Kirk memorial: Tens of thousands of people turned out in Phoenix Sunday to memorialize Charlie Kirk, the conservative activist who was slain earlier this month. President Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and multiple administration officials attended and spoke. (Washington Post) The event signaled the “degree to which conservative Christianity had melded with Republican politics in the Trump era.” (NYT) “Many speakers invoked the notion of a ‘revival’ and spoke in expressly religious terms.” (NBC News) Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, said she forgave Kirk’s killer. (USA Today) Striking a different tone, Trump called Kirk a “martyr” and said that while the Turning Point USA founder “did not hate his opponents,” Trump said he “disagreed with Charlie. I hate my opponent, and I don’t want the best for them.” He added, “I’m sorry, I am sorry Erika.” (AP) That said, Trump appeared to greet his estranged pal Elon Musk warmly at the memorial. (NYT)
Not traditionally the kind of thing lawyers like you to write down, but okay: Trump “posted somewhat of an open letter on social media Saturday to his top prosecutor,” directing Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate his enemies, including James Comey, Letitia James, and Adam Schiff. (AP) One former federal prosecutor said the directive could “give defendants an avenue to argue that such prosecutions are driven by improper motivations.” (WSJ) Trump’s outburst followed the resignation Friday of Erik Siebert, the US Attorney for Virginia’s Eastern District. Siebert was looking into Comey and James, but told Justice Department officials he was having trouble making cases. (NYT) Ed Martin, who runs Trump’s “weaponization” group at DOJ, and Bill Pulte, who runs FHA, pushed Trump to fire Siebert. (Washington Post) Trump will appoint his aide Lindsey Halligan, previously charged with investigating the Smithsonian, to Siebert’s old post. (NPR) Some in the administration “determined that even though it was likely this was another instance of the president accidentally posting a private message publicly, it was best to just carry on, and act like it was a written demand that was always meant for public consumption.” (Rolling Stone)
New headache: The administration will link autism to Tylenol use by pregnant women today. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “believes environmental factors are causing the rise in autism cases — despite ample evidence to the contrary, he suspects vaccines are involved — while many public health experts believe it’s because of changing diagnostic criteria and more attention to the condition.” (Politico) Trump declared “I think we found an answer to autism” at Kirk’s memorial. (Washington Post) He will appear with Dr. Oz and other administration officials at a press conference today. (Axios)
Administration perambulation: The Pentagon ordered journalists to clear all information—even unclassified info—they wish to report with authorities or lose their credentials. (NYT) Trump announced a $100,000 fee for an H1-B visa and announced “gold cards” that would allow wealthy applicants to pay $1 million, and corporations to pay $2 million, to arrange US residency. “Both moves probably will face legal challenges.” (Washington Post) The move set off a scramble among people with visas who were headed to the US this weekend. The White House later clarified that the fee would apply only to new applicants. (NBC News) The administration has canceled an annual report on hunger in the US, claiming it had become “overly politicized.” (WSJ) The US Congress is careening “toward a government shutdown on Oct. 1 with no obvious off-ramp in sight.” (Politico) The White House shut down a bribery investigation into border czar Tom Homan, who reportedly “was caught on tape accepting a bag filled with $50,000 in cash from undercover FBI agents in Texas in September 2024.” (Washington Post)
The best thing I ate last week, by Ann Limpert:
Scott Drewno, Danny Lee, and Angel Barreto make some of the city’s best fried chicken at their mod-Korean restaurant Anju. Now that they’ve taken over the kitchen at U Street’s Sport & Social, launching a menu called Upstate FTW, they’re turning out some pretty excellent Buffalo wings, too. The trio took a pre-opening trip to Buffalo, visiting eight wing spots in one day, and the R&D cram session paid off. The version they came up with is more straightforward than cheffy (hot, crunchy, glistening with Frank’s hot sauce and butter), and exactly what you hope for when the craving strikes. (1314 U Street, NW.)
Recently on Washingtonian dot com:
• We visited the new American Dream Experience near the White House.
• DC has a lot of unclaimed property. It’s Lynn Hall‘s job to reunite it with to its owners.
• The Caps’ upcoming season is likely to be Alex Ovechkin‘s last with the club, and tickets to the team’s last regular-season games next year are getting very expensive.
Local news links:
• White House aide Stephen Miller said that chalked messages outside his house in Arlington last weekend “amounted to ‘terroristic threats.'” (ARLnow)
• Alexandria’s Alfred Street Baptist Church is dealing with online backlash after it posted a sermon that called Charlie Kirk “an unapologetic racist.” (NBC4 Washington)
• Foo Fighters announced a surprise show at Black Cat Sunday. (Foo Fighters via Facebook) An enormous line formed on 14th Street as fans hoped to buy tickets. (PoPville)
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.
