Good morning. It’s cold and blustery and slippery out there today, with a high around 27 that you’ll wish actually felt like 27 degrees. A low near 3 tonight. Pretty much everything is closed or delayed due to this weekend’s storm. Remember to stretch before you dig out today. You can find me on Bluesky, I’m @abeaujon.87 on Signal, and there’s a link to my email address below.
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I can’t stop listening to:
Greg Freeman, “Gulch.” Here’s some muscular, noisy pop from the Vermont-based songwriter to start the week. Freeman plays Songbyrd tonight; the show is sold out, but you should probably call before you leave the house.
Take Washingtonian Today with you! I’ve made a playlist on Spotify and on Apple Music of last year’s music recommendations. I’ll make one for 2026 soon.
Here’s some administration news you might have blocked out:
Repeater: The CEOs of Minnesota’s biggest corporations called for “an immediate de-escalation of tensions” in the state in a public letter Sunday after a weekend in which federal immigration authorities shot and killed Alex Pretti, the second extrajudicial killing by President Trump‘s masked forces in Minneapolis this month. Many companies have avoided taking public stands since Trump retook power last year. (NYT) Video showed the administration’s accounts of Pretti’s death were, once again, bogus, ghoulish, and inaccurate. (AP) Gun-rights advocates criticized administration attempts to paint Pretti as a “domestic terrorist” because he legally carried a handgun, which he did not brandish as a Border Patrol officer ended his life. (NBC News) In fact, the feds shot Pretti after they disarmed him. Nevertheless, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and FBI Director Kash Patel attempted to blame his possession of a gun for his death. (Axios) The administration’s pattern of “immediately going on the offensive and demonizing the victim” may have hit its limit this weekend. (NYT) Trump claimed the administration was “reviewing everything” about the shooting and said, “At some point we will leave” the state. (WSJ) That may not be his decision: A federal judge in Minnesota will consider today whether Trump’s supposed “immigration crackdown” in Minnesota “has crossed the line into an unconstitutional and illegal occupation.” (NYT)
On the Hill: Democrats find themselves in the uncustomary position of having lots of leverage all of a sudden: A partial government shutdown could begin this weekend unless Republicans agree to reforms at DHS. (Punchbowl News) US Senator Jacky Rosen of Nevada, a moderate, has joined calls for Noem to be impeached. (AP) Even some Republicans are breaking away. (Axios)
Administration perambulation: Trump praised British troops after he disparaged them while running his mouth at Davos. King Charles had conveyed to his dismay. (Washington Post) On his social media site, the President insisted it was “TOO LATE” to stop the construction of a ballroom at the White House, a project that many Americans learned about after he tore down the East Wing. (Washington Post) A man in Utah punched US Representative Maxwell Frost of Florida in the face and shouted “we are going to deport you and your kind” when the congressman attended the Sundance Festival in Park City. (Axios) A squeaker of a vote last week showed how tenuous the GOP’s House majority has become. (WSJ) US Senator Ted Cruz of Texas blasted Trump’s tariffs and described Vice President JD Vance as Tucker Carlson‘s “protégé” in secretly recorded chats with donors. (Axios) Trump takes an abnormal amount of aspirin, his staff claim he’s “superhuman,” and what the heck is the truth about his health? (New York)
The Best Thing I Ate Last Week, by Ike Allen:
We just gave chef Eric Adjepong’s fabulous Ghanaian restaurant Elmina the sixth-place spot on our 100 Very Best Restaurants list—out last week—but if you’re in the mood for a more casual weeknight experience, there’s also Dawa, the low-key takeout restaurant he runs out of the same kitchen. Don’t let the Uber Eats interface fool you: some dishes here are just as good as what Adjepong serves at Elmina. The suya-spiced short rib over jollof rice bowl hits all the classic notes of West African cooking, but I think my favorite item was a box of chofi: spice-crusted fried turkey tails. Like some cross between chicken wings and crispy cubes of chicharrón, they were totally addictive dipped in Dawa’s pungent habanero sauce. (2208 14th St., NW.)
Recently on Washingtonian dot com:
• “I think the number one thing that I would recommend for my Republican colleagues is some therapy”: We watched “Queer Eye” with US Representative Sarah McBride.
• The founders of Tuckernuck talk about the buzzy clothing label’s local roots.
• A look back at how we emptied grocery store shelves before this weekend’s storm.
• What do Sheila Johnson, Paul Stanley, and Gheorghe Mureșan have in common? They’re all pictured in Dan Swartz‘s roundup of the best party photos from last month.
• Winter activities you can plan once the city thaws out.
Local news links:
• The Washington Post may eliminate its sports desk as it plots layoffs as soon as this week. Staffers are baffled by what, exactly, owner Jeff Bezos wants to do with his paper. (Status) The Post abruptly canceled plans to cover the Winter Games in Italy, which begin next Friday. (NYT) The Post’s “foreign staff have been told explicitly that their jobs are at risk.” (Ben Mullin/X)
• Eleanor Holmes Norton won’t seek reelection as DC’s nonvoting delegate to Congress, ending a painful guessing game fueled by muted public appearances and Holmes’s own statements. (NOTUS) Flashback: Last year, Norton “stumbled through a short speech in which she appeared to struggle with both reading and comprehension.” (Washingtonian)
• Buses are delayed today and Metro trains will run on a Sunday schedule. (DC News Now) All flights at National Airport were canceled yesterday. (ARLnow) A snowplow turned over in Alexandria. (WUSA9) A truck slid off the road in Arlington and managed to get T-boned by a house. (DC News Now) A planned snowball fight on the Mall yesterday was canceled due to bad weather. (ABC7) Some people showed up for battle anyway. (PoPville)
• Millions of gallons of sewage have spilled into the Potomac every day since a line ruptured in Montgomery County last Monday. (NYT) Most of the spill has been contained. (DC Water/X)
• A hawk got stuck in a batting cage in Annandale last week. (DC News Now)
Andrew Beaujon joined Washingtonian in late 2014. He was previously with the Poynter Institute, TBD.com, and Washington City Paper. He lives in Del Ray.
