UPDATE: NBCWashington reports that the package has been declared safe, and pedestrian access around the White House should be opening back up soon. more ›

This sounds like it must be a joke, but apparently, it's not. Infamous White House crashers Michaele and Tareq Salahi were stopped in a limo by Secret Service officers near the White House Wednesday night, the Associated Press is reporting. The incident occurred at the same time that President Barack Obama was hosting his second state dinner, this time in honor of Mexico's president. more ›

The massive Nuclear Summit heading to the Washington Convention Center next week is bringing along with it major road closures, barricades, checkpoints, bus rerouting, the shuttering of an entire Metro station, and all sorts of other headaches for the Mt. Vernon Square, Shaw and Chinatown neighborhoods. For all the specific details on what will be closed and when, see our earlier post and map. more ›

There was a brief suspicious package investigation around 15th and E streets NW on Wednesday evening, in the area of the Ellipse. As so often happens, the package, which turned out to be a plastic bag with clothes in it, was cleared so quickly we didn't even have a chance to report on it before the incident was already over. But as it turns out, there was more than package on display last night. The Post reports that the man who owned the bag of clothes had discarded it because he decided to go for a naked jog on E Street.

"He wasn't yelling or protesting. Just going for a jog," Wiley said. more ›

Truly charming news out of Hagerstown: the AP via WTOP reports that the Secret Service detained a Maryland man who showed up to one of Sen. Ben Cardin's health care reform town hall meetings with a sign reading, "Death to Obama." And wait, it gets even charming-er! The sign also reportedly read, "Death to Michelle and her two stupid kids." Thanks for classing up the joint, unidentified 51-year-old Maryland man. We're sure everyone appreciates your erudite contributions to the health care reform debate. more ›

As expected, the U.S. Secret Service, along with regional transportation officials and the MPD, unveiled their plan yesterday to close all Potomac River bridge crossings on Inauguration Day. The announcement also included the above map, which shows plans to close off almost 3.5 square miles of downtown Washington to vehicular traffic starting at 3 p.m. on January 19 until the morning of January 21. You can download PDFs of both the Law Enforcement and Public Safety Public Affairs Subcommittee Joint Transportation Plan and the Secret Service Security Plan at the D.C. government's Getting There web site. Both documents contain extensive information on road closures and restrictions throughout the inaugural celebration period. Maryland and Virginia also have special web sites set up with the latest information. Below the jump, you'll find excerpts from the recent announcements that include lists of road closures and traffic restrictions. Of special note for those of you planning on walking down to the National Mall for the inauguration will be the list of pedestrian access points -- you'll want to pick which way you plan to walk before you set out that morning, or you may find yourself stuck.
more ›

Blogger, itinerant rock critic, and former NPR Arts Editor Bill Wyman had a fine piece in yesterday’s Washington Post introducing the Moby Quotient, the formula he and, uh, “hyperbolic geometry” expert Jim Anderson have devised for quantifying exactly how egregiously a given artist has sold out when they license one of their songs to an advertiser. (Moby, in case you don’t know, won the dubious honor of having this formula named after him for his... more ›

The six protesters at American University who were recently charged with crossing a police line and disorderly conduct for blocking the path of Karl Rove's car (seen above) will pay $100 fines to settle the charges. As we mentioned earlier, arrest warrants were issued by the Secret Service for the protesters only last week, many months after the original April 3 incident and long after the students involved had served the 40 hours of... more ›

This one has been covered already by a few of our fellow bloggers, but it's almost too good to pass up. Yesterday Wonkette reported that departing White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove was looking to get even with some students at American University who had the tenacity to show him their asses. See, back in April Rove gave a speech before the university's College Republicans, meeting with some feisty protestors as he made... more ›

In the case of Marion Barry vs. "The Enemies of the People," Barry, it seems, always comes out on top. The "Mayor for Life" has been cleared of the last of his traffic charges after the D.C. attorney general's office filed court papers electing not to go forward. The Ward 8 Council member was pulled over by U.S. Park Police for driving too slowly on Dec. 16. In June, Barry was acquitted of driving under... more ›

When Open Circle Theater company announced it would be reworking Jason Robert Brown’s Songs For A New World to revolve around the Iraq war, it was hard to squelch images of flag-waving, canons booming, and rewritten lyrics resembling "I’m not afraid of anything/be it religious extremists, guns or sand." Fortunately, Open Circle’s take has much more sincerity, skill and imagination driving their interpretation, though ultimately, the work stands up better unadorned. Songs, which recently was... more ›

As Sommer mentioned earlier this week, I was fortunate enough to have been invited to speak on a panel on D.C. voting rights at the YearlyKos Convention, a huge gathering of progressive activists and bloggers in Chicago. This morning I will be sitting alongside D.C. Shadow Rep. Mike Panetta, Danny Rose from DC Vote and Kesh Luddewhetty of DC for Democracy, all of whom will detail the current fight for voting rights, where it stands... more ›

Good morning, Washington. Enjoy that cool temperature outside while it lasts (60° right now!), because the heat will be back before you know it (i.e. this weekend), so much so that you'll probably need to switch on the old A/C come Sunday. Mayor Fenty's nominee for Schools Chancellor, Michelle Rhee, knows a little something about sitting around in expectation of feeling the heat herself right now -- there's the questions about the secret way Fenty... more ›

Former mayor and D.C. Council member Marion Barry (D-Ward 8) was back in court yesterday on charges stemming from two traffic stops last year, one of which resulted from what Secret Service officers say was erratic driving under the influence of alcohol. The full list of charges against Barry, 71, include driving while under the influence, operating a vehicle while impaired, operating an unregistered vehicle and misuse of temporary tags. The trial is scheduled to... more ›

>> In wake of yesterday's tragedy, Virginia Tech has canceled most of its spring sports events. [ABC 7] >> Two Secret Service officers have been injured in an accidental shooting outside the White House, inside the southwest gate security booth. Secret Service spokeswoman Kim Bruce said one officer was injured in the leg and the other received a shrapnel wound in his face. It's not clear how the accidental shooting took place. The Secret Service... more ›

Ah Easter. A day traditionally filled with brightly colored eggs and the bunnies that inexplicably lay them, a fat honeyed ham, and clusterbombs. Well, the last one may not be a tradition yet, but the Vineeta Foundation and a coalition of other peace advocacy groups including Code Pink, DAWN, Voters for Peace, Fellowship of Reconciliation, Coalition for Justice and Accountability, Democracy Rising, US Campaign to End the Occupation, Backbone Campaign, After Downing St., Iran Coalition... more ›

We mentioned in it the roundup, and our search for really great still shots of what went down has come up empty so far (though thanks to all the AU students who've sent us photos and personal accounts directly), but this video is making its way through the series of You Tubes, and it's worth sharing. You can read the WaPo's account of the "citizen's arrest" attempt/protest action carried out by a group of... more ›

Good morning, Washington. We've been hearing some excellent reports from the frontlines of the celebrations in Georgetown last night, after the Hoyas came back from a 10 point deficit to beat the Tar Heels 96-84. Thousands of students filled M Street in their exuberance, chanting "Hoya Saxa" at the top of their lungs. A smaller group apparently ran all the way to the White House, where the Secret Service asked them to keep it down.... more ›

>> Aramark, the ballpark concessionaire at RFK and other stadiums, is eliminating trans fat from its menu, and adding a number of "healthy" options such as veggie hot dogs, pasta salad and fruit cups. In related news, Baseball has been officially declared the least fun sport in America. [Baltimore Business Journal] >> Reigning MLS Defender of the Year and D.C. United backline stalwart Bobby Boswell is holding a launch party for his blog tonight... more ›

Yesterday's snow storm didn't add up to much as expected, but some of the melted snow on the ground froze overnight, causing a number of suburban school districts to alter their schedules today. Lucky bastards. In the end, only 1.3 inches of snow fell at Reagan National Airport, and with sunny days today and tomorrow with highs in 40s, most of that will likely disappear in short order. Better luck next year, snowpocalypse. Jail Time... more ›

Morning, fair DCist readers. How was your weekend? Did you do any of the numerous activities in the area, like the homeless walkathon, or celebrating an elephant's fifth birthday? Did you go on a fruitless hunt for the elusive Wii? Or perhaps you got married in a Roman castle? You could have signed with the Cubs for $136 million! Whatever you did, we hope it was excellent. The start of this week seems to... more ›

If you work near 16th and L, you might have noticed that going to work this morning was a little worse than usual. And not just because the of the miniature existential crisis that every long weekend brings — in addition to that Labor Day malaise, the traffic situation was and continues to be pretty godawful. Sixteenth Street is blocked off by police cars, and somebody seems to have constructed a tent across two lanes... more ›

Good morning, Washington. In case last week's single-tracking of the Blue Line wasn't enough, it looks like there will be more Metrorail delays this weekend. WMATA's website tells us that Red, Blue and Green Line riders should expect delays starting Friday night and going through Sunday at midnight. Though it's a pain for those of us still in town, better they do this when most folks are out of the District as opposed to, say,... more ›

Former Maryalnd Terp and Silver Spring native Lonny Baxter was arrested by Secret Service agents early this morning after witnesses reported hearing shots fired from a sport-utility vehicle near the White House. Baxter's SUV was stopped near the intersection of 17th and I streets NW where officers found a handgun and spent casings inside his vehicle. Baxter, along with fellow passenger Irvin Martin, was charged with carrying a pistol without a license, having unregistered... more ›

Well folks, today is 06/06/06. If you're unaware of the old wives tales associated with this date, Livescience.com may shed some light on it. And since it's somewhat hard to avoid an entire day, just watch out for any folks named Damien, the apocalypse, or devilish things today. Officers Placed on Leave after D.C. Jail Break: In what sounds like a Hollywood storyline, the D.C. jail break continues to make news. WJLA tells us that... more ›

The District has seen good times in the last few years. Business is booming and neglected properties and neighborhoods are seeing new investment. Crime has plummeted over the past decade, and corruption in the government has faded even as the city's coffers have filled with new tax revenues. The ebbing of many of the city's old problems has combined with the election year to place a new and intense focus on fixing the city's... more ›

We're not big fans of Dick Cheney. It's not the whole obsession with secrecy, or the way he's encouraged his aides to out CIA officers. It's not the refusal to accept that Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda are not the same thing, or his long-standing ties to government contracting juggernaut Halliburton. It's that damn motorcade and security detail. A few months back WTOP discovered that Cheney's motorcade -- yes, the one that regularly snarls traffic... more ›

Can someone tell me why we're watching an episode that's almost all filler when there are only two more episodes left in the entire series? This week President-Elect Santos waffles mightily over picking cabinet members and the little missus negotiates the politics of moving into the White House. As the Santoses prepare for the move to Washington, Mrs. Santos is nicely overwhelmed by all the changes facing the family, from more security to multiple maids... more ›

This post was written by DCist contributor Campbell Roth. He's done it again. TOKA Salon and Day Spa owner Nuri Yurt, the man behind First Lady Laura Bush's "softer, more glamorous look" (stop laughing!) in 2005 is now heralding his latest work of art, First Twin Jenna Bush's "famed new hairdo." To which we say: Huh? According to Yurt's press release, "numerous news accounts" of Jenna's new style have made him the buzz of the... more ›

The big day finally arrives, in more ways then one. It's Election Day and the Santos and Vinick campaigns are tense, tense, tense. The show opens with some pre-credit flirting between Josh and Donna. After the credits, we're treated to a shot of Josh and Donna in bed, together, presumably post-coital. I'm a long time Josh/Donna shipper but the scene was more than I wanted to see. There's some mild awkwardness between the two, but... more ›