Good morning. Rain on and off today until late afternoon with a high around 68. Gusts will pick up overnight, with a low near 48. The Wizards visit Oklahoma City tonight. 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:
Maura Weaver, “Jefferson Highway.” Weaver’s poppy alt-country is so solid I’m willing to overlook her clown getup in this video. She plays Quarry House Tavern tonight with Dim Wizard and Coral Grief.
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:
Shutshow: The government shutdown will turn a month old today, and the US Senate will jet off out of town this afternoon anyway. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that the shutdown has cost the US economy $7 billion so far and said that impact could double if it goes on for another month. (Politico) Unemployment claims, Metro ridership, restaurant spending: How the shutdown is hitting the DC region. (Washington Post) Senate Majority Leader John Thune offered a glimmer of hope yesterday, saying he planned to meet with some Democrats about ending the shutdown. (Politico) Federal SNAP benefits will run out Saturday, and Democrats say President Trump “is weaponizing hunger” to try to force them to negotiate. (Axios) Area food banks will face a squeeze as furloughed workers and people who will lose SNAP benefits converge on their services. (Government Executive) Some local pet owners are giving up their furry friends as the shutdown vise tightens. (NBC4 Washington) The White House “raided three different financial accounts to make sure U.S. troops are paid Friday.” (Axios) State Department staffers in the passport services department, who usually get paid during shutdowns because their work is funded by fees, are working without pay during this one. (Federal News Network) Employees in the House of Representatives—who, unlike their bosses, don’t get paid during a shutdown—got letters they can send to creditors. (Politico)
The war on cities: Federal prosecutors indicted congressional candidate Kat Abughazaleh and five other people in Illinois, claiming that they “banged aggressively” on an ICE agent’s car outside an immigration facility in a Chicago suburb. The indictment says they scratched the word “Pig” into his vehicle. (Chicago Tribune) Abughazaleh, who has said agents threw her to the ground during a protest last month, called the prosecution political. (AP) The feds misspelled Abughazaleh’s name multiple times in the document. (Rolling Stone) Federal agents broke down the door of a family in Gary, Indiana, allegedly punched one member of the household in the eye, and arrested everyone inside, including children who are US citizens. (Chicago Sun-Times) An ICE agent threw a protester in Colorado to the ground after she asked whether he’s “a good Christian.” (HuffPost) An appeals court in Illinois paused a judge’s order that would have required Border Patrol honcho Gregory Bovino to appear in court every day. (NBC News) Illinois Governor JB Pritzker asked Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to pause operations on Halloween, saying, “Please let children be children for one holiday, free from intimidation and fear.” ICE agents tear-gassed people at a Halloween parade in Chicago over the weekend. (Chicago Sun-Times) ICE and CBP are using a facial recognition app called Mobile Fortify to “verify” citizenship. (404 Media) The Pentagon ordered National Guard units in every state to create “quick response” forces that can “respond to riots and civil unrest.” (WSJ) DHS frequently posts videos of what it claims are riots and unrest, and they’re just as frequently a load of hooey. A White House spokesperson said the administration would continue to share “banger memes.” (Washington Post) Sidney Reid, who successfully fought allegations she had assaulted a federal agent in DC, says US Attorney for DC Jeanine Pirro is “wasting everyone’s time.” (All Rise News) Meanwhile: Colorado sued the US, saying a planned move of the Space Force to Alabama is “illegally motivated by President Donald Trump’s desire to punish Colorado for its mail-in voting system.” (AP)
Administration perambulation: Trump announced he had directed the Pentagon to begin testing nuclear weapons for the first time since 1992. (Washington Post) GOP donor Bryce McFerran withdrew his nomination to become a top official at the US Export-Import Bank after Democrats pointed out his connections to Russian companies. (Politico) The crypto exchange Binance helped the Trump family’s crypto business in hopes of securing a pardon for its founder, Changpeng Zhao. It worked. (WSJ) Trump demanded the prosecution and imprisonment of another of his perceived enemies, former special counsel Jack Smith. (NBC News) Americans oppose Trump’s demolition of the East Wing to build a ballroom he plans to name after himself by a two-to-one margin. (Washington Post) Republicans may hold a midterm political convention—like countless things these days, an unusual move—in Las Vegas. (WSJ) Casey Means will have a confirmation hearing today; Trump wants the MAHA influencer to be the US surgeon general. (ABC News) The FBI said it opposed allowing the Office of the Director of National Intelligence to become the lead agency for counterintelligence. (NYT) Did FBI Director Kash Patel use a government jet to attend a wrestling match in Pennsylvania with his country-singer girlfriend? Kind of looks like it! (TNR)
Hidden Eats, by Ike Allen:
In the Four Corners area of Silver Spring—where it feels like some cruel urban planner bulldozed through a quaint main street with two highways—you’ll find Elilta, a family spot where a banner celebrating a child’s Ethiopian Orthodox baptism party from April still hangs on one of the walls. Indecisive, I went for kornis, a layered, kitchen-sink dish that combines kitfo (seasoned ground beef), tibs (sauteed chunks of beef), and quanta fitfit (dried beef stir-fried with injera strips). The whole thing is piled with tomatoes, onion, and white cheese, like an Ethiopian take on seven-layer nachos. In hindsight, any one of those dishes alone might have been just as satisfying (they’re all available solo too) but I was feeling maximalist. (10118 Colesville Road, Silver Spring.)
Recently on Washingtonian dot com:
• Bethesda’s popular Woodmont Grill closed abruptly Tuesday night, surprising diners.
• Sandwich Guy skeletons are all over DC.
• Isla and the neighboring Goodlove Lounge will bring chic island vibes to downtown DC when they open next week.
• Photos from Tuesday’s 17th Street High Heel Race, which drew thousands of people to Dupont.
Local news links:
Virginia election: Democratic gubernatorial candidate Abigail Spanberger is making a play for rural voters, a sign that she may be looking to run up her big polling lead over Republican Winsome Earle-Sears. (Politico) Here’s a profile of GOP lieutenant governor nominee John Reid. (Washington Post) A judge allowed Virginia Democrats’ plan to redistrict the commonwealth to move forward. (Axios Richmond)
• National Guard troops will stand around doing eff-all in DC until at least February. (CNN)
• Republicans in the Senate advanced a plan to move the FBI headquarters to the Reagan Building. (Government Executive)
• A jury in Virginia acquitted former Coast Guard officer Peter Stinson of charges that he called for Trump’s assassination online “after his attorneys argued the posts were protected speech under the First Amendment.” (Washington Post) Related: Tennessee officials dropped charges against Larry Bushart, who had been locked up for more than a month after he posted a meme about Trump and assassinated Republican activist Charlie Kirk. (WTVF)
• Attorneys for a first-grade teacher in Newport News said an assistant principal “ignored multiple warnings that a 6-year-old student had a gun” before he shot his teacher in 2023. (NBC4 Washington)
• DC Streetcar service will end in March. (WTOP)
• A new report found “systematic failures in behavioral health services at the District’s New Beginnings Youth Development Center, adding to mounting concerns about the troubled Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services.” (WUSA9)
• A land swap that would have eased the creation of a museum for the US Navy in DC’s Navy Yard neighborhood appears to be on ice, and so do plans for the museum. (WBJ)
• A flight from Dulles to Rome had to turn around after a passenger dropped a laptop into a cargo area. (Washington Post)
• A rash of airbag thefts plagues Crystal City. (ARLnow)
• Police charged Lance Irving Lesane Jr. with indecent exposure and public intoxication after, they allege, he got naked and chased customers around a Walmart in Dumfries. (DC News Now)
• Fairfax County Animal Services workers reunited a cat with its family 15 years after it disappeared as a kitten. (WTOP)
Thursday’s event picks:
• The Double Exposure Investigative Film Festival kicks off in Penn Quarter.
• Get glamorously spooky downtown at Morris American Bar’s Masquerade party.
See more picks from Briana Thomas, who writes our Things to Do newsletter.
We’re seeking nominations for our 500 Most Influential People list. Get ‘em to us 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.
