Mayor Vince Gray’s chief of staff met with a crisis management consultant who has worked with everyone from Monica Lewinsky to Wesley Snipes.

>> Both the Examiner and the WaPo have stories today about the dreary work ahead for D.C.’s deputy mayor for education, Victor Reinoso. A recent report released by the Children’s Advocacy Roundtable which shows that 32 percent of children in the District of Columbia are living below the poverty line — twice the national average. The report also highlights the high number of youth victims of violent crime and the high obesity rate among…

Written by DCist contributor Abby Lavin. Last year’s rioting in response to Danish drawings of the prophet Muhammad showed that, in some cases, cartoons are no laughing matter. They don’t just lampoon the political landscape; they have the power to shape it as well. Provisions Library’s current exhibit, Drawing Back: Cartoon Critiques of America, examines the power of cartoons as a means of social protest. Culled from twenty-five different countries, the 80 editorial cartoons are…

The folks at Gothamist recently dropped us a line urging us to check out New York comedian Todd Barry who will be performing at the D.C. Improv tomorrow through Sunday. To get to know Mr. Barry a bit better, check out his Gothamist interview, where you can read about an experience he had with a psycho cabbie and how he once saw Monica Lewinsky in Bed, Bath, and Beyond. Barry is a veteran of Comedy…

D.C. has its fair share of odd celebrity sightings, but tonight, DCist came across one of the strangest: Matthew Lesko. That’s right, that guy in the flashy question mark jacket on the television infomercials about how you can cash in on free money from government programs. Lesko was seated on the outdoor patio at Cactus Cantina on Wisconsin Avenue near the National Cathedral, complete with his trademark question mark jacket and funky glasses. After Lesko…