Good morning. Rain and thunderstorms today with a high around 82. Rain is likely overnight with a low near 67. The Philadelphia Flyers will visit the Washington Capitals this evening for preseason hockey at the Giant Center in Hershey, Pennsylvania, home to the Caps’ development team the Hershey Bears. DC Power FC will host Brooklyn FC at Audi Field. You can find me on Bluesky, I’m @abeaujon.87 on Signal, and there’s a link to my email address below.
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I can’t stop listening to:
Iris DeMent, “Let the Mystery Be.” I’ve long appreciated the philosophical underpinnings of this tune. DeMent plays the Birchmere tonight.
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:
The case race: Lindsey Halligan, President Trump‘s handpicked new interim US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, is “planning to ask a grand jury in the coming days to indict former FBI Director James Comey for allegedly lying to Congress, despite prosecutors and investigators determining there was insufficient evidence to charge him.” (ABC News) The statute of limitations on prosecuting Comey, who Trump fired in 2017 and has railed against ever since, runs out on Tuesday. (NYT) This attempt at lawfare “comes days after President Donald Trump demanded prosecutors use the criminal justice system to punish his political opponents.” (Washington Post) Halligan has never worked as a prosecutor. As a lawyer in Florida, she “largely defended insurance companies that were being sued by homeowners who believed they were entitled to better coverage.” (Mother Jones) Related: Ed Martin, who briefly served as Trump’s interim US Attorney for DC and now heads the “Weaponization Working Group” at DOJ, “retracted a letter he sent to an FBI agent who responded to the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre that suggested the agent was being investigated in relation to a defamation lawsuit against Alex Jones.” (CNN)
Epstein, Epstein, Epstein: Trump personally tried to kill the Wall Street Journal’s report that he wrote a birthday letter to the disgraced, deceased financier Jeffrey Epstein by calling Rupert Murdoch from Air Force One. The attempt followed months of scrambling in the White House to contain the Epstein story, the rare “negative story on which many of his supporters didn’t seem inclined to follow his lead.” (WSJ) “Top congressional Republicans and White House allies are working behind the scenes to prevent a politically charged floor vote to release the government’s Jeffrey Epstein case files next month.” (CNN) The National Park Service and United States Park Police removed a satirical statue that depicted Trump cavorting with Epstein from the National Mall early Wednesday morning. Authorities have said little about the removal, or why it happened, other than saying it was not in compliance with a permit issued by NPS. (Washingtonian)
Another shooting: A gunman fired at an ICE office in Dallas, killing one detainee and injuring two others before killing himself. Law enforcement sources identified the shooter as 29-year-old Joshua Jahn, who authorities said had inscribed messages that were “anti-ICE in nature” on rounds they found. (NYT) Administration officials rushed to describe Jahn as a left-wing terrorist, but former friends describe him as someone with a “vaguely libertarian bent who despised both major parties and politicians generally (including Trump) but who didn’t engage with politics beyond that.” (Ken Klippenstein) “If you want to stop political violence, stop telling your supporters that everybody who disagrees with you is a Nazi,” Vice President JD Vance, who reportedly once wondered whether Trump was “America’s Hitler,” said yesterday. (TNR)
Going nuclear: The White House issued an “extraordinary ultimatum” Wednesday evening, telling federal agencies they should prepare for mass layoffs if the government shuts down at the end of this month. (NYT) The pronouncement appears to be designed to pressure Democrats to accept GOP terms on a budget deal and “marks a significant break from how shutdowns have been handled in recent decades, when most furloughs were temporary.” (Politico) “While some Senate Democrats are very clearly agitating for a shutdown — or at least some sort of high-profile clash with the Trump administration — others are already starting to channel their fears about the catastrophic impacts of such a move.” (Punchbowl News)
Administration perambulation: South Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok said the country’s investment projects in the US would remain on hold until the administration revises the US’s visa system following an immigration raid on a Hyundai and LG facility in Georgia. (Bloomberg) Key FEMA staff said they couldn’t reach the agency’s acting director, David Richardson, for almost 24 hours during deadly flooding in Texas in July. Richardson told Congress he was in his truck with his sons at the time; records show he was in the DC region. (Washington Post) The Department of the Interior is preparing for more layoffs in mid-October. (Government Executive) Jimmy Kimmel‘s return to the air Tuesday night drew 6.2 million viewers—a number that doesn’t include streaming figures. (NYT) Two GOP Congressmen have proposed that the US “mint 400,000 silver dollar coins” with a likeness of slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk. (Fox News) “The White House unveiled a new “Presidential Walk of Fame” Wednesday that shows an autopen machine instead of former President Biden’s portrait.” (Axios)
Hidden Eats, by Ike Allen:
You could visit Zeleno, in Dupont Circle, every day and never realize that it’s a Bulgarian restaurant. The smoothies, avocado toast, and açaí bowls are lovely here, but nothing suggests the Balkans until you look closer: the Symi sandwich features Bulgarian feta, several items feature Bulgarian honey, and the Bulgarian yogurt bowl is marketed as such. When I heard that its owners Iva and Alex Gotzev, who also run a nearby pilates studio, were opening the more ambitious Eunoia in the Union Market District, I decided to return to Zeleno for an aesthetically pleasing breakfast one morning. The Bulgarian yogurt bowl, layered with carefully sliced fruit and granola, was rich and delicious.
Recently on Washingtonian dot com:
• If you’re confused about whether you can get a Covid vaccine this fall, that’s understandable. Here’s a guide to their availability and cost in DC, Maryland, and Virginia.
• The District announced it had won a judgment against one scofflaw and filed suit against a dozen Maryland and Virginia motorists the Office of the Attorney General said had accumulated traffic citations and left them unpaid—it said one driver owed more than $102,000 in penalties and fines.
• A new report on the region’s economy finds that the DMV’s rate of unemployment this year “rose by more than eight times as much as the national rate— and ballooned particularly in the suburbs.”
• Dawa, Eric Adjepong‘s new carryout on 14th Street, Northwest, sells West African favorites and cocktails bottled to-go.
• A wedding photographer talks about how she got a couple to “get weird and trust me.”
Local news links:
• A 15-year-old pleaded guilty to taking part in an August attack on Edward “Big Balls” Coristine, the former DOGE staffer whose beating sparked Trump’s declaration of a crime emergency in DC. Another 15-year-old has been accused of taking part. (Washington Post)
• Trump’s “surge of resources to the nation’s capital hasn’t extended to its courts, which have been hampered by judicial vacancies that have led to a backlog of cases and slowed the administration of justice.” (CBS News)
• Karen Attiah‘s firing violated the Washington Post’s agreement with its labor union, a filing from the union says. (NYT)
• Montgomery County officials canceled a Hispanic heritage festival planned for Wheaton next month, citing concerns about immigration enforcement. (NBC4 Washington)
• Anti-scale fencing and barriers have gone up around the White House again. “The Secret Service confirms the heightened security is tied to a foreign dignitary’s visit, though officials have not named the individual. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to stop in Washington after addressing the United Nations in New York later this week.” (Fox 5 DC)
• DC’s Covid-era “streatery” program will end in November. Some restaurateurs say the District’s new fees for outdoor dining will be too expensive for them. (WTOP)
• The District’s new Go-Go Museum is “struggling to pay its bills and staff” and founder Ron Moten says it needs to raise $500,000 to stay open. (NBC4 Washington)
• An Alexandria woman died after being struck first by the driver of a car who fled, then by an officer who responded to the scene in Fairfax. (ALXnow)
• Compass Coffee’s CEO says the company will likely file for bankruptcy after a judge ruled the company must pay rent for its roasting facility in Ivy City. The local java chain says its landlord “has failed to correct maintenance issues at the building.” (WBJ)
• A viral photo that shows a supposedly “off-center” pier on the Bay Bridge has sparked fears among travelers; Maryland authorities say the bridge is safe. (NBC4 Washington)
• DC wants to host the 2031 Super Bowl after the Commanders’ new stadium is open. (Axios D.C.)
• A Whole Foods “Daily Market Shop” will open in the former Amazon Fresh space in Crystal City next month. (ARLnow)
• Area businessman Roger Mody, who co-founded Signal Corp. and was a partner in Monumental Sports & Entertainment, has died at 61. (WBJ) “Rest in peace to a true giant of our community.” (Ted Leonsis/X)
Thursday’s event picks:
• Bobbi Brown is in conversation with Robin Givhan to discuss her memoir, “Still Bobbi,” at Sixth & I.
• Gigi MacLaughlin performs at Arlington’s Met Park.
• Learn about the volleyball-like Chinese game 9-Man at MLK Library.
See more picks from Briana Thomas, who writes our Things to Do newsletter.
Noms, Noms, Noms: 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. We’re also seeking nominations for our 500 Most Influential People list. Those are due by December 5.
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.
