Good morning. Partly sunny with a high around 83 today. A low near 68 with wind gusts and a chance of showers overnight. The Nats are at the Giants again this evening. 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:
Hemlocke Springs, “Girlfriend.” The buzzy lo-fi synth pop artist plays 9:30 tonight with the Girl!
Take Washingtonian Today with you! I keep ridiculously long playlists on Apple Music and on Spotify of this year’s music recommendations. Here are 2025’s songs (Apple, Spotify), too.
Here’s some administration news you might have blocked out:
The war: A US helicopter crashed near the Strait of Hormuz last night. The cause of the crash is not yet clear, and President Trump said the aircraft’s two crew members were safe. (NYT) Israel and Iran both said they would halt attacks on each other for the time being. (Reuters) Trump said in an interview that he’d told Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu “you will be on your own very soon” if attacks continue. He also said—as he’s been claiming for months—that the US and Iran were close to a peace deal and that “We are getting everything we wanted” in negotiations. (Axios)
Let’s step back for a moment. Trump and Netanyahu are increasingly fighting their entwined wars with different motivations. (AP) Trump “has been asserting blunt power over Israel in a way no other president has in decades,” and Netanyahu has found few sympathetic ears among members of the GOP, which Trump controls entirely. (Washington Post) Trump has had less success controlling the reality of the stalemate between Iran and the US since he began this war in late February. (NYT) Meanwhile: Oil prices spiked yesterday but pulled back after Iran and Israel said they’d stop trading attacks. (CNBC) New US government stats show that US airlines spent 78 percent more on fuel in April than they did during the same period a year before. (AP)
Boos news: Knicks fans booed Trump vigorously when he attended Game 3 of the NBA Finals in New York last night. (NBC News) “It was, I think, mostly cheers,” is how Trump remembered the incident. (AP) His visit imposed great security restrictions near Madison Square Garden—no one was able to walk near the arena, which sits above part of Penn Station, without train tickets or Knicks tickets, and a planned watch party outside MSG was canceled. (NBC New York) The Knicks lost. (Athletic)
A Hill to climb: Trump formally nominated Todd Blanche to become attorney general. Tensions between Blanche and Senate Republicans over his part in Trump’s apparently thwarted $1.8 billion slush fund and the release of files about the deceased, disgraced financier Jeffery Epstein could complicate his confirmation. (NYT) A single Republican no vote on the Senate Judiciary Committee, which includes US Senator John Cornyn of Texas—whose primary defeat Trump recently engineered—could sink Blanche’s nomination. (Politico) And a deal to reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which expires Friday, remains in doubt because Trump picked Bill Pulte to serve as acting director of national intelligence. (Politico) Some GOP lawmakers expressed qualms about Trump’s defense of the fund after Blanche said DOJ wouldn’t move forward with it. (NBC News)
Almost Heaven can wait: The administration squashed criminal inquiries into coal businesses controlled by Republican US Senator Jim Justice of West Virginia. (ProPublica) Meanwhile, Vice President JD Vance said he’d referred Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, both Democrats, to DOJ for criminal investigation over what Vance said was social-services fraud in their state. (NBC News)
Administration perambulation: A federal judge in Massachusetts threw out the administration’s $100,000 fee for H-1B visa applicants. The White House signaled it would appeal. (NYT) The Pentagon re-categorized the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as a Christian denomination after backlash from LDS lawmakers. (Politico) The administration will seek to denaturalize 17 US citizens, the largest-ever such effort. (CBS News) In a social media post, Trump called for US Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough to be fired. (Hill) Vance added a henhouse shaped like his residence—and 12 chicks—to the US Naval Observatory. (AP)
A Glenstone day trip, by Daniella Byck:
We’re spoiled with world-class museums in DC, but there’s another drive-worthy option nearby: Glenstone, the massive temple of contemporary art and sleek architecture in Potomac. Like Smithsonian Institution facilities, the complex is free to access (though you must reserve tickets in advance), with an incredible collection of mind-bending works from legendary artists (think: Alexander Calder, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Yayoi Kusama). You’ll want to see the grounds—especially Jeff Koons’s living sculpture “Split-Rocker”—as much as the galleries, but the indoor/outdoor aspect of the museum offers some flexibility if it’s hot or raining. Guided nature walks are a lovely half-mile stroll across streams and structures, leaving from the Pavilions Overlook at 1 PM. But this luddite’s favorite feature? No photos are allowed in the galleries, and the rule is enforced, so your view isn’t ruined by an errant iPhone.
Recently on Washingtonian dot com:
• Protect yourself from ticks this summer, because they want to eat you.
• A trip to Rockville’s Gourmet Bazaar offers a tour of Iranian cuisine via stews, sandwiches, and groceries.
Local news links:
• The Kennedy Center removed Trump’s name from its website. It’s still on the building. (Washington Post)
• The Office of Management and Budget hopes to force the Smithsonian Institution to spend money according to the administration’s priorities. (NOTUS)
• DC Council Chair Phil Mendelson unveiled his own version of a budget, which restores social spending on some programs to which Mayor Muriel Bowser had proposed cuts. (WAMU)
• The DC Board of Ethics and Government Accountability censured Council member Trayon White for failing to file required financial disclosures and fined him $900. (WTOP)
• Accused hair-touching Metro creep Bryan Betancur‘s trial will begin next month. (WUSA9)
• An electrical fire in a tunnel near the Medical Center Metro station injured six workers. (MoCoShow)
• A school bus hit a tree in Frederick County. The driver was airlifted to a hospital. (DC News Now)
• Police in Prince William County said a drunk driver struck a police vehicle while cops conducted a separate DUI arrest. (WUSA9)
• A lawn mower caught on fire in Falls Church. (DC News Now)
• The years-long work on the GW Parkway’s northern end is finally complete. (WTOP)
• Copperhead snakes are biting people earlier this year. (ABC 7)
Tuesday’s event picks:
• The first of this summer’s Sunset Parades takes place at the US Marine Corps War Memorial this evening.
• The Picnic Theatre Company presents a parody performance of “My Favorite Year” at la Maison Française.
See more picks for this week from Briana Thomas, who writes our Things to Do newsletter.
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.
