Results tagged “marionbarry”

Congress Heights on the Rise had the scoop Sunday morning: former D.C. mayor and current Ward 8 Council member Marion Barry is currently filming a pilot for a reality television series. No joke.

No word yet on when the show would make its way to TV or on what network, but folks are telling The Advoc8te they have seen the film crews trailing Barry about town and that members of his staff have confirmed that they are in fact filming a pilot for Barry's reality show. No idea yet on what the focus of the reality show will be, but if in fact true, The Advoc8te isn't really all that surprised. Wasn't it just the next illogical progression for the ultimate showman - his own reality series?

As we noted in the Morning Roundup, Ward 8 D.C. Council member Marion Barry was just released from the hospital on Monday evening after being treated for dehydration and a mild blood infection. But now D.C. Wire is reporting that the "Mayor for Life" actually went right back to Howard University Hospital late last night, thanks to an allergic reaction he had to some shrimp.

Barry and a group of friends decided to celebrate his release by going to dinner. Barry ordered the shrimp. A short time later, he says, his throat began to swell closed, his vision went blurry and his tongue went numb.

Both D.C. Wire and WJLA have updates on the health of former mayor and Ward 8 D.C. Council member Marion Barry, who was hospitalized early Tuesday morning to be treated for "dehydration," according to his spokesperson. Barry remained in Howard University Hospital's intensive care unit on Wednesday, according to both reports, and will likely not be discharged for at least a "few days." Seems kind of extreme for a case of dehydration, but considering Barry's age and health (he's 73, has diabetes and recently underwent kidney transplant surgery), we suppose it makes sense for his doctors to be overly cautious. Barry spokesperson Natalie Williams elaborated to WJLA that Barry's doctor also diagnosed the councilman with a mild infection.

Marion Barry may be sick in the hospital today, but he and fellow D.C. Council member Harry "Tommy" Thomas, Jr. (D-Ward 5) were taken to task today by the Washington Post's editorial board for making racist and sexist comments Friday night at a parks and recreation committee hearing on the confirmation of acting Department of Parks and Recreation director Ximena Hartsock.

D.C. Council member Marion Barry (D-Ward 8) has been hospitalized for dehydration, the Post is reporting this morning. Barry did not show up for the Council's Tuesday morning legislative session, at which point word finally came down from Bernadette Tolson, his chief of staff, that the councilman was admitted to Howard University Hospital at 3 a.m. this morning.

And we love these quotes from the Ward 8 rep on the passage of emergency legislation today that lays out ethics rules for D.C. Council members, courtesy the Post's Tim Craig:

"This is a step forward," Barry said. "This part of a series of efforts to try to make sure the council is moving forward." ...

Continue reading "Marion Barry Loves Ethics Rules"

WMATA broke ground today on a new Metrobus facility in Southwest that could eventually house and maintain 250 Metrobuses (to start, it'll only hold 114 buses). The new facility is intended to replace the 72-year-old Southeastern Bus Garage – that's the one the agency had to sell and vacate last year because it was so close to Nationals Park. The building isn't yet fully funded but is being financed through a combination of the proceeds from the sale of the Southeastern Bus Garage plus another $30 million from stimulus funds.

Don't even pretend that Marion Barry was your first guess.

Most of America only really knows two things about Marion Barry: he was once the District of Columbia's mayor, and he seemingly can't stay out of trouble with the law. With yesterday's HBO premiere of the new documentary, The Nine Lives of Marion Barry, it's likely that many people have gained a broader sense of who Barry was and what he once represented for the District. But even with the additional context provided by the film, it's less likely that all that many people will become more sympathetic to the aging local politico and his persistent troubles.

The new documentary by Dana Flor and Toby Oppenheimer about D.C.'s own Mayor for Life, The Nine Lives of Marion Barry, premieres on HBO tonight at 9 p.m. DCist caught the film when it debuted at SILVERDOCS earlier this summer, and overall the reviews have been a mixed bag. Critics already familiar with Barry and his lengthy history wanted more, while others were pretty much satisfied. You can be the judge for yourself tonight, if you've got access to HBO.

Do make sure to check out the Washington City Paper's latest update on the Marion Barry girlfriend contract saga, which reveals that a previous paramour of Barry's, Sharon Bowen (she's the one who lives in Ohio), had a job arrangement with the Ward 8 Council member that was remarkably similar to the one that Donna Watts-Brighthaupt did.

Like Watts-Brighthaupt, Bowen was tasked to work in the area of poverty research. According to her personal-services contract with the District, Bowen was paid to “conceptualize, design, plan and execute” a poverty summit for the council’s housing and urban affairs committee, which Barry chairs.

Continue reading "Marion Barry's Other Lady Friend/Employee"

While you're busy wondering about Attorney General Peter Nickles's political future, don't forget our city's other least trustworthy public servant! Reviving the local story that rocked early July, the Washington Post has obtained a bunch of old emails from the office of Ward 8 D.C. Council member Marion Barry, which show that Barry and his staff complained about the quality of the work his ex-girlfriend, Donna Watts-Brighthaupt, was doing for them at the time.

Barry's complaints included Watts-Brighthaupt's spelling, grammar, tendency to fall behind schedule and failure to be available during business hours. The e-mails appear to confirm that Barry and Watts-Brighthaupt traveled together to Las Vegas and Memphis. Although the city paid for Barry's airfare, the government did not foot the bill for Watts-Brighthaupt and did not pay for a $736 spa visit at the Paris hotel during their May trip to Las Vegas, travel records show.

Via City Desk, today Marion Barry took to CNN to defend himself against recent allegations involving former girlfriend Donna Watts-Brighthaupt and the brewing investigation into allegations that he funneled earmarks to organizations under his control. In a spirited seven-minute exchange with CNN anchor Carol Costello (only a short part is included in the video above, we'll update if we can get the entire interview later), Barry does what he has always done best -- blame other people for his own troubles. Whether the July 4 stalking arrest or the 1991 crack-cocaine bust, Barry never owns up to having done much wrong. Even in the one instance where Barry takes responsibility for his actions -- not paying his taxes -- he still manages to diminish his own culpability by claiming that lots of other Americans also don't pay their taxes. Bu then there's the interview closer, where Barry coats himself in political equivalent of Teflon: "...[F]or anything else that has happened to me, it was the result of other people, enemies, conservative Republicans or anyone else doing this to me."

If you didn't already spend your lunch hour, like we did, listening to the series of voicemail recordings, leaked to the Washington City Paper, that Marion Barry left for ex-girlfriend and alleged "stalkee" Donna Watts-Brighthaupt, we can verify that they make for fairly fascinating listening. The tapes (and the Loose Lips column that goes with them) have even started to become a bit of an internet sensation, if the WCP's Twitter feed is any judge: "Marion Barry killed our web server :'( ... we're working on bringing it back to life," they updated earlier this afternoon. The web site and the tapes are both back up now though, so take a gander, or if you can't listen in your office, they're also offering some typed up partial transcripts.

You don't have to be a genius to have guessed that this might have been the case: Tim Craig reports in the Post that Donna Watts-Brighthaupt, the ex-girlfriend Marion Barry is accused of stalking, was hired by Barry as a contract member of his staff after they had struck up a romantic relationship. Barry has reportedly paid his former special lady friend at least $10,000 worth of taxpayer funds for her services as a consultant. You mean to say a politician whose time as mayor is as much known for his totally corrupt job patronage practices as it was for crack cocaine use is still hiring people as favors while serving as the Ward 8 D.C. Council member? Color us totally unsurprised.

We've joked in the past about how no jail can hold Marion "Mayor for Life" Barry, but so far this latest brush with the law for the current Ward 8 D.C. Council member really does appear unlikely to come to anything beyond more embarrassing headlines.

Marion Barry was arrested last night, after a woman flagged down a Park Police officer in Anacostia Park, claiming that the Ward 8 Councilman had been stalking her. The former Mayor was released after being processed at central lockup, but will need to make a court date at some point to face the charges.

     

Huge lines wound around the AFI Silver Theatre on the Closing Night of SILVERDOCS with people -- old, young, black, white, east and west of the river -- all pondering the same general question.

CORRECTION: The announcement this morning was to enact regulations targeting auto repair and tow lot operators - not used car sales. Which makes my comparison below more or less moot, since Barry is focusing on the used car sales lots. Mea culpa.

Mayor Adrian Fenty and Mayor for Life Marion Barry might need a little dose of humility with their morning tea, we think. Over the weekend we found out that Barry will once again dodge prison time for not paying his taxes for five years, and instead will face another two more years of probation. But rather than gracefully accept the ruling, the Post reports, Barry has accused U.S. prosecutors of harboring a vendetta against him and has demanded that their actions be investigated. Just as Barry justified his opposition to same-sex marriage by calling himself a "moral" politician a few weeks back, we think maybe it's time for the Ward 8 council man to not try and turn everything into a spectacle. Mayor Fenty might also want to tread a little more carefully. As we wrote earlier this morning, the Post reports that Fenty has allowed a close personal friend to chauffeur him around town in the mayoral SUV, possibly violating city regulations in the process. Is the mayor's buddy allowed to drive Fenty around? "He is if I let him," claims the mayor. We're guessing we aren't the only ones reminding the mayor today that laws aren't deemed applicable or not based on the mood of the city's chief executive.

Ward 8 Councilmember and Marion Barry held a press conference yesterday to assail publicly the U.S. attorneys who tried to put him behind bars for not filing his 2007 tax returns on time, a violation of the former mayor's parole. "This is a victory for the people of the District of Columbia and myself and a defeat -- a defeat, a defeat, a defeat -- for the U.S. attorney's office," he said, according to Nick Miroff at the Washington Post. A victory for you and me, District of Columbia! Barry was given an extension to his probation as punishment for violating the probation he earned in 2006 for failing to pay his taxes. He told people at the conference that he's feeling good after his recent kidney transplant and intends to become an advocate for kidney health issues. Should we expect to see him as a judge in the National Kidney Foundation–sponsored DC 101 Chili Cookoff next year?

Council member Marion Barry must have felt pretty confidently that he'd taken the temperature in Ward 8 on the issue of gay marriage. Barry, as you know, cited his constituents when he voted against recognizing same-sex marriages from other jurisdictions. Oh, but fickle democracy! Mercurial, bicurious base! How might Barry have known that left to their own affairs, Ward 8 Democrats would vote nearly 2 to 1 for teh ghey! The Washington Post reports that the meeting saw a 21 to 11 vote supporting the legalization of same-sex marriage in the District. The article also notes that opponents of same-sex marriage are appealing for a direct referendum on gay marriage. A Prop 8 for Ward 8? Good god almighty, let's hope not.

Last night on The Daily Show, Jon Stewart did a little segment on the D.C. Council's recent vote to approve legislation that would allow the District to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states. Naturally, the show picked up Ward 8 D.C. Council member Marion Barry's quote from last week's anti-gay marriage rally, the infamous "I am a politician who is moral" speech. Stewart's response? ‘Normally, when someone says something that oblivious to their own reality, you might say, “What, are you on crack?”‘

The D.C. Council has voted 12-1 in favor of a bill that recognizes same-sex marriages performed elsewhere. Ward 8 Council member Marion Barry (D) was the lone dissenter.

Make sure to tune in to Mike DeBonis and Tim Craig, who are both posting live updates from D.C. Council chambers as a bill that would allow the District to recognize same sex marriages performed legally in other jurisdictions is debated. Apparently the full Council actually initially voted unanimously, without debate, to pass the legislation, but then Ward 8 Council member Marion Barry (D), who last week pledged to vote against the bill, asked that the bill be reconsidered because he didn't realize what he had just voted on. DeBonis is reporting that since debate began, it's gotten pretty damned heated, with Barry and Catania trading barbs about which position is more moral.

The AFI-Discovery Channel SILVERDOCS Documentary Festival will close out its 2009 run with a film chronicling the life of times of D.C.'s own Marion "Mayor for Life" Barry, festival organizers announced today. The world premiere of The Nine Lives of Marion Barry, by filmmakers Dana Flor and Toby Oppenheimer, is set for Saturday, June 20 at the AFI Silver, and is billed thusly:

Many people remember Marion Barry as the philandering drug-using mayor of the nation's capital, who was famously caught in a 1990 FBI sting operation. Yet others know him as a folk hero, a civil rights champion and defender of the poor. Barry’s soaring achievements, catastrophic failures and phoenix-like rebirths have made him a symbol of mythic indestructibility. Who is Marion Barry, really? A hero? A scoundrel? Why is he such a polarizing force? And why do people still vote for him?

    

Ward 8 D.C. Council member and former mayor Marion Barry today said that he opposes a measure that would allow the District of Columbia to recognize same-sex marriages performed in states where they are legal. Barry made his remarks to a crowd of around 150 gathered to protest the legislation in Freedom Plaza this morning.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Deborah Robinson has yet to rule on anything, but most of the reporters in the courtroom are already making the call that Mayor for Life (and Ward 8 D.C. Council member) Marion Barry won't be sentenced to a single minute of jail time. Tom Sherwood and Jim Iovino at nbcwashington.com declared it to be so hours ago, and the City Paper's Mike DeBonis has since reported that federal prosecutors have actually dropped their request to revoke Barry's probation and send him to jail.

D.C. Council member and former mayor Marion Barry's most recent round of tax troubles went on the back burner for several weeks while he recovered from kidney transplant surgery. But now Mike DeBonis is reporting that federal prosecutors have filed additional court documents they say show that Barry hasn’t made any back tax payments to the District government, which he is required to do as part of his probation, since last July. "In total, according to a IRS affidavit, Barry owed the feds $277,688 in back taxes, penalties, and interest as of Jan. 8," writes DeBonis. Prosecutors are once again asking that Barry be jailed for violating the terms of his probation. A hearing is set for April 2.

D.C. Wire reported that Ward 8 Council member Marion Barry was back at work in Council chambers today for the first time since his kidney transplant surgery on Feb. 20. The Council member reportedly drew applause when he took his seat this morning. Barry had previously announced his intention to return to work on March 2, but was instead readmitted to Howard University Hospital later that day after doctors discovered air pockets near the site of his surgery. Barry did show up to act as coach for the D.C. Council basketball team in their game against local media on Monday.