>> In case you missed this story in the Washington Post this morning, it seems another one of D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton's favorite long-term projects, expanding the District's Home Rule Charter to give the District budget and legislative autonomy, is actually getting some play up on the Hill. We can't even count how many times she's introduced bills like the two currently before the House, but it's been at least 15 years since Congress......

The House Judiciary Committee today endorsed legislation granting the District a voting seat in the House of Representatives, setting the measure on track for a full vote by the end of the month. Though legal scholars debated the constitutionality of the measure in a hearing before the committee yesterday and a number of amendments were considered today, the legislation easily gained the approval of the Democratic-led committee, 21-13. Rep. Mike Pence (R-Ind.) and Rep. Chris......

How many times have we written this headline, only to be disappointed as another roadblock gets thrown in the way of District voting rights? Far too many times. But we're a little more optimistic these days. The Post is reporting that the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform today endorsed the legislation that would finally grant the District a voting representative in the House of Representatives. The vote was 24-5. The legislation is set......

Amidst tough questions in an early afternoon press conference today on the loss of the House, the war in Iraq, and the resignation of Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, President George W. Bush faced a question he wasn't expecting — on District voting rights. A reporter asked Bush on whether he would support legislation currently moving through Congress that would grant the District one voting seat in the House of Representatives and may come to......

Sometimes the lede to another publication's story is so subtly great that we just can't bear to mess with it. Take it away, NBC4: Lawmakers on Capitol Hill want to know what is causing some male fish to acquire female sexual characteristics in the Potomac River and its tributaries. We'll bet they do! This past week has seen more than its fair share of sexual degeneracy on Capitol Hill. The midterms are nearly here, and......

Step by step, inch by inch. That's how legislation that would grant the District a voting seat in the House of Representatives is proceeding, but at least it's going somewhere. The House Judiciary Committee is set to hold a hearing today on the D.C. Fair and Equal House Voting Rights Act, a legislative proposal put forth by Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.) and D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton that would finally give the District a full......

It was mid-May when we found out that a bill that would grant the District a voting seat in the U.S. House of Representatives was finally moving forward, having met with the approval of the House Government Reform Committee. Yesterday news came through that the legislation -- known as the D.C. Fair and Equal House Voting Rights Act -- may soon overcome another obstacle, putting the District one step closer to voting representation in the......

Ahhh, Thursday. First day of the weekend. And a good day to play hooky and watch Trinidad and Tobago (powered by Howard alum Shaka Hislop) take on England at noon. And the news for the day: Controversy Over Terrorism Funds Continues: Local officials feel they were cheated of valuable federal anti-terrorism funds. Federal officials claim that local requests of funds for anti-terror program were ineffective at best. Who should we believe? The Post is......

When it comes to fighting for District voting rights, activists face two main challengers -- the U.S. Congress and themselves. Members of Congress just either don't care much about whether or not the District's 600,000 residents have voting representation, or believe its a constitutional mandate written in stone that they shouldn't. They can be swayed. But many District-based voting right activists differ sharply on what the best approach to gaining voting rights is -- some......

Are the stars aligning? We're slow to trust Tom Davis after he toyed with our heart last week, saying first that a vote for D.C. was a sure thing, then warning us that the road was still quite long and fraught with danger. One thing's for sure, however. Davis is doing his damnedest to build momentum (Tomentum?) for the bipartisan bill, and he's close to convincing us it's a real possibility. Yesterday, with District officials......

Good morning, Washington. We hope you got through yesterday's tornado warning alright — it seems likely that you did. Today should bring better weather, with a high of 75 and relatively twister-free skies. Optimism Over Voting Rights Bill: Yesterday brought news of Reps. Davis and Norton's bill to bring congressional representation to the District. Now the Post brings us more details on the challenges that the measure will face. Congressman Davis says that the House......

Pretty much everything has been proposed to get the District its long desired voting rights, but not much progress has been made since the city's residents were disenfranchised in 1801. Will today be the day that changes? We can only hope so. At 9:15 a.m. today, Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.) and D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton formally introduced new legislation that would grant the District one full voting seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.......

While racial tensions are simmering over the battle to win ownership of the Nationals, another longstanding baseball feud is nearing a head, with potentially frustrating results for District television viewers. Comcast, which provides cable service to most D.C. cable subscribers, has refused to air Nationals broadcasts produced by MASN, Orioles owner Peter Angelos' sports network, which owns the rights to Nats games. Three weeks ago, Virginia Representative Tom Davis (R) held hearings on the matter......

This entry was written by DCist contributor Benjamin Kabak. This weekend's action for the Nationals started on Friday afternoon when Major League officials, representatives from Comcast and Mayor Anthony Williams appeared in front of Rep. Tom Davis' (R-Va.) House Government Reform Committee. Davis, in an effort to get all Nationals' games shown on DC-area cable networks, is attempting to broker a deal between Comcast and Peter Angelos that resolves a dispute that has left most......

An impasse over Nationals broadcasting rights that has been almost two years in the making may soon reach resolution, if only because the powers-that-be are sick of missing games. Pressure on the parties involved is increasing from a number of governmental bodies. This weekend the Maryland Court of Appeals agreed to hear the latest Comcast appeal in a case that pits the cable company against the Orioles and Major League Baseball. The decision to hear......

Hoping to diffuse controversy over a special Congressional panel charged with investigating the federal government's shortcomings in the response to Hurricane Katrina, Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert has tapped local Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.) to be the panel's leader. The panel has been a flashpoint of debate in recent days, with Congressional Democrats claiming it would "whitewash" what have come to be perceived as substantial failures in the federal response to the storm and......

It is a sad morning for news professionals and news junkies here in the District, as it was reported late last night that ABC "World News Tonight" anchor Peter Jennings has died after a struggle with lung cancer. "Peter has been our colleague, our friend, and our leader in so many ways," ABC News President David Westin said in a statement. "None of us will be the same without him." Weather today will see highs......

There are two seemingly popular traditions in politics that DCist likes to make fun of: politicians from Texas trying to decide how things here in the District should be, and naming everything in a 5 mile radius after President Ronald Reagan. The two traditions recently came together in a proposal from Congressman Henry Bonilla, House Representative from the 23rd District of Texas. Bonilla's grand idea, which was put forth on July 28? Renaming 16th Street......

Continuing in what has been a rough few months for baseball, Rafael Palmeiro of the Baltimore Orioles -- the team many District residents called their own prior to the arrival of the Nationals -- was given a 10-day suspension today for steroid use, reports the Post. The O's first baseman, who only two weeks ago celebrated his milestone 3,000 hits and 500+ home-runs, is the tenth player suspended so far this season for failing steroid......

File this story under the "Petty Politics" category. Via The Stakeholder, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's own blog, we find that Roll Call is reporting that Democratic financier and philanthropist George Soros, at right, has floated the idea of buying the Washington Nationals, recently having joined the ranks of one of the groups that submitted a bid for the team. Congressional Republicans, upon having heard the rumor, slyly implied that action could be taken against......

Hearing on D.C. Gun Laws Tomorrow: The District's three-decade old gun laws, some of the most restrictive in the country, will be the focus of attention at a hearing of the House Government Reform Committee tomorrow. Chaired by Tom Davis (R-Va.), the committee will consider legislation put forth by Rep. Mark Edward Souder (R-Ind.) that would overturn the city's gun laws and restrict the ability of the City Council to impose other controls upon gun......

Photo of parking meters, part of a series by epmd, posted in DCist photos. More WMATA ... Davis Calls for Inquiry: Oh boy, Congress is getting involved in the WMATA situation. Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.), the chairman of the powerful House Government Reform Committee has called on the Government Accountability Office -- which is Congress' investigative arm -- to conduct an inquiry into how the region's transit system has spent its money and managed......

It looks like the proposed mini-city to be built adjacent to the Vienna metrorail station in Fairfax County could be in jeopardy with the powerful chairman of the House Government Reform Committee threatening to insert language into legislation that would block the sale of WMATA land to Pulte Homes, the Michigan-based developer of the project. (For those who don't know, Davis was the chairman of the committee that oversaw the steroids in baseball hearings, and......

The office of D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams and some in Congress are questioning whether the federal burden being placed on the District during the upcoming Inaguration is too much, the Post reports. The office of Virginia Rep. Tom Davis (R) -- who chairs the House Government Reform Committee, which oversees the District -- said the White House is putting forth an "unfunded mandate." The White House says homeland security funds are being used to......