Good morning. Sunny and crisp today with a high around 66. A low near 45 overnight.
🚨 Nominations are now open for next year’s list of the region’s 500 Most Influential People in Policy. You have until December 4 to put a name forward. 📫 You can find me on Bluesky, I’m @abeaujon.87 on Signal, and there’s a link to my email address below. This roundup is available as a morning email newsletter. Sign up here.
I can’t stop listening to
Daði Freyr, “Think About Things.” The quirky Icelandic musician (and Eurovision Song Contest star) plays the Lincoln Theatre tonight.
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
The threat of a drone attack by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps prompted the US to withdraw bombers from a British air base, officials said yesterday. (NYT) Vice President JD Vance said the planes were moved “out of an abundance of caution,” and President Trump confirmed there had been a threat, though neither went into specifics. (WSJ) During a rally in Nebraska Monday, Trump said Iran “can take out a city, let ’em take out Los Angeles, let ’em take out San Diego. This is a very small price to pay.” (LAT) Attendees cheered the unusual suggestion. California Governor Gavin Newsom called the President “deranged and dangerous.” (CBS News) Trump signed an executive order that will allow “red dye” diesel, sold tax-free and typically used in farming equipment, to be purchased by anyone in a bid to stanch soaring prices of the fuel due to the war. He noted he didn’t “know what the hell” red-dye diesel is. (NBC News) Trump also claimed the war, which he launched in February, is “going to end very soon.” (NYT)
News about the news
Trump announced that he or his super PAC MAGA Inc. will pay for previously taxpayer-funded TV ads that praise him following criticism from both Democrats (whom he blamed) and Republicans. (Politico) The White House continued Trump’s feud with some news outlets and refused to allow a Politico reporter to accompany the President on his trip to Nebraska. Other outlets declined to fill the Rosslyn-based news organization’s seat. The White House said that traveling with Trump is a “privilege not a right.” (CNN) Trump advocated for the arrest of journalists from the New York Times and other outlets who reported a Saturday rally in Ohio wasn’t well-attended. (Hill) Former White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt will join Fox News. (NBC News)
Administration perambulation
Trump approved a firing-squad execution for US Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan, who carried out a mass shooting at Texas’s Fort Hood in 2009. It’s been 65 years since the US military last carried out such a death sentence. (Politico) The Department of Justice plans to revoke citizenship for 40 Americans, “saying they committed immigration fraud by lying or omitting facts on their applications.” (NBC News) US Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, a Republican who’s got a new book out today, called Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth “an actor,” and “not a manager.” (MS Now) Russian officials have quarantined a hospital facility where a plague researcher died and placed around 200 people under observation. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the US was monitoring the situation. (NBC News) Senate Majority Leader John Thune said “there’s no clear path forward” on a measure to make daylight saving time permanent in the US, despite Trump’s recently revived interest in the bill, a fixation that prompted the President to share GOP Senator Tom Cotton‘s cell phone number on social media over the weekend. (Politico) Trump used a vile slur against Annie Andrews, a Democrat running for US Senate in South Carolina, in a social media post. (NBC News) New York Governor Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency amid a measles outbreak in the Empire State. (Bloomberg) Health Secretary RFK Jr. told attendees at a MAHA summit in DC that even if he were to be “hit by a truck,” his department “will never go back to what it was before.” (Mother Jones)
Plan a horse country day trip, by Daniella Byck:
Middleburg, with its brick sidewalks, historic buildings, and preppy equestrian vibe, is a charming destination for a fall day trip. Around an hour and 15 minutes from DC, the horse country hamlet has a lovely downtown area to explore. Pop into boutiques such as home goods store Crème de la Crème, stationery shop Every Little Something, and the cozy Middleburg Books. You can also visit the Museum of Hounds and Hunting North America, which highlights the area’s sporting tradition in art and other artifacts.
Recently on Washingtonian dot com:
• The Jockey Club is back—inside a luxury assisted living facility.
• A new exhibit at the Folger Shakespeare Library explores how Black women have engaged with Shakespeare’s work for hundreds of years.
Local news links:
8 is enough
Alex Ovechkin announced that this season with the Capitals will be his last in the NHL. (Washingtonian) Ticket prices soared for his planned last regular-season game next year. (DC News Now) We still haven’t really reckoned with the Caps’ star’s “public, unflinching support of Vladimir Putin,” Barry Svrluga writes. (Athletic)
Other local news
• Trump will visit an industrial site in Baltimore County today. (Banner)
• Metro is considering an 11 percent fare increase, chalking the hike up to inflation. (Washington Sun)
• The former landlords of the shuttered U Street gay bar Rush sued the bar’s cofounders over what they say is unpaid rent. (City Cast DC)
• The city of Alexandria reinstated bus service for hundreds of students. The city had instituted “walk zones” for some students, but parents said the plan ignored the existence of hazardous crossings. (ALXnow)
• Jayden Daniels and Sam Cosmi are likely to start for the Washington Commanders against the Giants on Sunday, according to head coach Dan Quinn. (Washington Sun)
• Ikea will close three of its smaller-format ” Plan & Order” shops in the region. (Fox 5)
• Local singer-songwriter Marilyn Hucek is on the new season of “The Voice.” (The MoCo Show) She performed Shakira’s “La Tortura” last night. (“The Voice”/YouTube)
Things to Do:
• “Maybe Happy Ending” opens at the National Theatre.
See more picks for the week ahead 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.
