Christmas Eve falls on a Monday this year, so President Bush has ordered the federal government to close on Dec. 24., giving most federal employees an extra long weekend for the holiday. Many feds may be left out of the sweet deal, though: Bush’s executive order states that department heads may order some employees to report to work on Dec. 24 “for reasons of national security or defense or other public need.” Plus pretty much…

Maybe we’re cheeseballs, but we love the Annual Turkey Ceremony, the moment when the president “pardons” a lucky turkey (plus an alternate) who then becomes the official National Thanksgiving Turkey and gets to spend the rest of its days on some farm at Disneyworld or something like that. Sure, it’s capricious and cutesy, but who cares! Turkeys are funny looking, and presidents posing with turkeys are even funnier. This year will mark the 60th anniversary…

The folks over at Dulles Metro extension are breaking out the construction tools … and the credit cards. $900 million of the $2.83 billion price tag of the initial 11.6-mile leg is in that Transportation Department spending bill tied up in Congress and under threat of veto by President Bush. But with or without the money, officials plan to start work, reports The Examiner. Is it just us, or does this violate everything you ever…

Good morning, Washington. Flickr user zenfrisbee went down to the West Lawn yesterday to catch the festivities surrounding the Dalai Lama’s visit and acceptance of a Congressional Gold Medal. China, naturally, had “solemnly demanded” the cancellation of the event, which saw President Bush appear with the Dalai Lama in public — something no sitting U.S. president has done before. Bush dismissed China’s concerns over the event, saying he didn’t think it would severely damage relations…

>> The Nationals might go ahead and pay to change the name of the Navy Yard metro stop themselves. [WTOP] >> Foxhall Road is closed to through traffic from Reservoir Road to Nebraska Avenue until Thursday, October 25, 2007 due to construction. [DDOT] >> Police make arrest in ten year old murder case. [WaPo] >> President Bush called the Dalai Lama a “universal symbol of peace and tolerance” during his ceremony to receive a…

The last time the Dalai Lama was in Washington, not even spiritual enlightenment could help him figure out why District residents still lacked voting rights. And now that he’s coming back, maybe he’ll have a little word with President Bush and Congressional Republicans about it. Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader will be in town next week to accept a Congressional Gold Medal. The medal, which accompanies a resolution passed last year that recognizes him as “a…

Good morning, Washington. We always thought it might be sort of fun to suggest something totally off the wall about President Bush, like that he might, oh, hate your children and want them to die sick and alone. Now that he’s gone ahead and confirmed it, it’s hard to know where to go from here. Is there anything worse than sick and dying children? How about, President Bush is in league with the devil? While…

When it comes to who the D.C. Republican Party should side with in the 2008 presidential contest, the choice is obvious — Mike Huckabee. Sure, the former governor of Arkansas doesn’t have much of a chance of winning, but he’s been consistent in his support of D.C. voting rights. In yesterday’s All-American Presidential Forum on PBS, hosted by Tavis Smiley, it was Huckabee who backed voting rights for the District’s 600,000 residents. In response to…

Written by DCist Contributor Fredo Alvarez In a 60-39 cloture vote, the U.S. Senate barely passed the Matthew Shepard Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007 (S 1105) today as an amendment to the FY 2008 Defense Authorization Bill (HR 1585). The measure would expand protection against hate crimes to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community, and would enable the Federal government to provide assistance in the investigation or prosecution of…

New Hampshire Looks to Smack Down Senators: After the U.S. Senate failed to overcome a filibuster on legislation that would grant the District a voting seat in the House of Representatives, voting rights activists swore they would have their revenge. On the top of their list are Republican senators John McCain (Ariz.), Gordon Smith (Ore.), and Thad Cochran (Miss.), not to mention the lone Democrat to vote against the bill, Max Baucus (Mont.). But one…