Photo by Mr. T in DC

Good morning, Washington. We hope you’ve been enjoying the stunningly beautiful weather we’ve been having this week. Our friends over at Capital Weather Gang say it’s likely to continue through the weekend, though with a small chance of some more of those pop up afternoon and evening thunderstorms we grew so accustomed to in June. Still, for this time of year, we’re grateful for as many eat-your-lunch-outside days as we can get.

Barry Stalking Charges Dropped: As we predicted, the stalking charges against Ward 8 Council member Marion Barry were dropped yesterday. The news prompted yet another late night press conference by Barry spokesperson Natalie Williams, where she fielded some questions about the recordings published online by the Washington City Paper. Barry’s reaction to the tapes? “Barry is not disappointed,” by his behavior on the audio tapes, Williams is reported to have said.

House Panel OKs D.C. Budget Without Amendments: Interest groups and lobbyists had been lining up all week for a fight with the U.S. House over any controversial amendments they might have tried to attach to the D.C. budget this week, but so far it’s been smooth sailing. The House Appropriations Committee late Tuesday adopted D.C.’s federal appropriation without adding any budget riders forbidding the city from using taxpayer money to subsidize abortions or pursue a medical marijuana initiative, the Examiner reports. Amendments could still be offered on the House floor, though.

Briefly Noted: Police probing death of elderly man in Adams Morgan … DCPS security firm accused of unfair labor practices … D.C. pulled $50M share of Metro dedicated funds.

This Day in DCist: In 2008, we wondered if we’re a town or a city, and in 2007 we patted the D.C. area on the back for having such high rates of volunteerism.