Evans to Hold Hearings on Stadium Financing: The D.C. City Council's Committee on Finance and Revenue, chaired by Jack Evans (D-Ward 2), pictured at right, is taking in testimony on financing arrangements for a new Nationals baseball stadium today and Monday, May 16. Today's session will feature D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams, District CFO Natwar Gandhi, and eight groups that submitted private financing proposals for the stadium. Monday's session, slated to begin at noon, will include public testimony. Neil Alpert, chairman of the D.C. Baseball Association, today encouraged residents to testify in an editorial published in the Examiner (but not available online), noting that:

Given how enthusiastically the District has already embraced the Nats, the community need to support the commitment to the team financially. Despite the claims of several Council members and other officials, an investment in the Nationals through a new stadium is a safe, worthwhile investment.

Debates Over D.C. Presidential Primary Set for Weekend: A special commission of the Democratic National Committee is meeting in Chicago this Saturday to revamp the presidential primary mechanism for 2008, and D.C. voting rights activists are leaning on members to endorse a D.C. first-in-the-nation primary to highlight the District's lack of voting representation in Congress, the Post reports. And while former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, current DNC chairman, was one of the few Democratic contenders to participate in (and win) the 2004 D.C. primary, long-time Democratic strategist and District resident Donna Brazile just doesn't see it in the cards. Evans and activists from the D.C. Democracy Fund aren't giving up though, and according to DCist sources may push a "Potomac Primary," which would have Maryland, Virginia, and D.C. all hold a presidential primary on the same day, sometime after New Hampshire and Iowa but before South Carolina.

Should D.C. Trips Be Privately Financed?: Much like the controversies brewing in Congress over privately funded travel, the W.Times is reporting today that private enterprises paid for $70,000 worth of travel for District officials in 2004 and early 2005. While city officials defended the practice, Councilmember Vincent Orange (D-Ward 5) warned of possible conflicts of interest.

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