Good morning. The arctic blast lasts and lasts: High of 21 but it will feel a lot colder; low of 12 tonight. We’ll finally start to warm up a bit tomorrow. You can find me on Bluesky, and there’s a link to my email address at the bottom of this post.
I can’t stop listening to:
“Inside and Out” by Feist. Do you ever jam out to a BeeGees song that comes up on a mix, then remember there was a terrific Canadian cover of it, then spend the day listening to that version and write about it for your job the next morning? No? Just me?
Here’s some Trump news you might have blocked out:
• “I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now,” the Right Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde, Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington, told President Trump during a service at Washington National Cathedral Tuesday. (Religion News Service) FLASHBACK: I spoke with Budde in 2019 after cathedral leadership chastised Trump over his statements about Baltimore.
• The government shakeups continue: Federal employees in offices dedicated to diversity, equity, and inclusion programs will be placed on leave, with plans to lay them off. (Washington Post) The Justice Department reassigned career officials, a highly unusual move. (AP) Trump also yanked John Bolton‘s security detail. (CNN) “This is what retribution could look like during the second Trump presidency: payback dressed up in the language of victimhood.” (NYT)
• The White House’s Spanish-language website has vanished. (WUSA)
• Feds are nervous. (WSJ)
• The pushback begins, too: State AGs filed suit to stop Trump’s birthright citizenship executive order. (NYT) There are multiple lawsuits that challenge DOGE. (Reuters)
• Department of drama: DOGE honchos Vivek Ramaswamy and Elon Musk “shared a radical vision for shrinking the government, but their strategies for reaching it diverged and were ultimately incompatible.” Ramaswamy is now out, and Musk has a White House email address. (Washington Post)
• Danielle Hegseth, Pete Hegseth‘s former sister-in-law, submitted an affidavit to the US Senate that alleges Trump’s nominee to run the Defense Department “has an alcohol abuse problem and was abusive to his ex-wife Samantha.” (NBC News)
• Are people tuning out? Ratings for Trump’s swearing-in were lower than for his 2017 ceremony or Joe Biden‘s 2021 ceremony. (Deadline)
One good podcast, by Rob Brunner
“DC Rock History”
Hosts Alex Vidales, left, and Philip Basnight, right, with guest John Kelly, center. Photograph by Ruth Pritchard-Kelly.
It’s not the first podcast on DC rock history (check out, for example, “End on End,” which goes through every Dischord release in order), but “DC Rock History” is different: It endeavors to tell the broader story of our music scene in the rock era, starting with the 1960 album Bo Diddley Is a Gunslinger (an album we also picked as a DC classic, for what it’s worth). The podcast has a simple format, with hosts Philip Basnight (singer for Broke Royals) and Alex Vidales inviting on guests to discuss familiar records like Link Wray’s great self-titled 1971 album, as well as more obscure fare such as Cherry People. Season one wrapped last month, with more episodes coming at some point that will venture into the punk and new wave ’80s.
Recently on Washingtonian dot com:
• Albi is the best restaurant in Washington, per our food critics. The full 100 Very Best Restaurants list will go online today.
• What was it like to be among the MAGAs at Old Ebbitt on Inauguration Day? Jessica Sidman was there.
• Say, isn’t that TikTok’s CEO next to me at Starbucks?
• Vegan restaurant recommendations.
• We talked with the Inn at Little Washington’s farmer-in-residence.
• Focaccia recommendations right here.
• Two nice-looking weddings: One with a great playlist, and another deeply steeped in music. We like that!
Local news links:
• The cicadas will return this spring. (The Weather Channel)
• Panda SmarTrip card. That is all. (Reddit)
• The indoorguration was a boost for DC restaurants. (WBJ) RELATED: Darrow Montgomery‘s photos of Inauguration Day. (WCP)
• Downtown businesses welcome Trump’s return to office order. (NBC4)
• The Tysons casino is moving along. (WBJ)
• Members of a DC police special squad “found illegal guns but failed to arrest the people who had them,” and now the department wants to fire two officers involved. (WCP)
• Prince Harry settled his suit against Rupert Murdoch‘s UK newspapers. (Washington Post) That could give Washington Post publisher Will Lewis some breathing room, David Folkenflik reported earlier. (NPR)
• Third Meal is going to huge at this Taco Bell. (PoPville)
Wednesday’s event picks, by Briana Thomas:
• Test your jigsaw skills at Aslin Beer Co. in Alexandria. ($20+)
• Enjoy Armenian cuisine, wine, and film at the Embassy of Armenia. ($65)
• Take a music class with guitarist Hasan Imam Hamdani. (Free)
See more of Thomas’s picks here.
If you love your workplace, now’s your chance to nominate it for Washingtonian’s next Great Places to Work contest. Register here to get the ball rolling.
Okay, that’s it. Let’s get cooking.
