Good morning. Sunny with a high around 69 today. A low near 44 overnight. The Capitals visit Ottawa this evening.
🌎 How well do you know the District? Play our geography game and test your local knowledge. 📫 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
Deerhoof, “Return of the Return of the Fire Trick Star.” Deerhoof plays Black Cat tonight with That This and Jacky Cougar & the Vampyres From Africa.
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
Pete tea
The Pentagon will reinstitute press briefings this morning after six months without one, a schedule change that just happens to follow US Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky filing an impeachment resolution yesterday against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who’s expected to speak this morning. (Axios) The resolution contains eight articles, including three about the stalemated Iran war. A majority of House members would have to vote for it for the measure to proceed to the Senate. (NYT) But! If it passes, outgoing House Speaker Mike Johnson could withhold the measure from the Senate, punting it to the next Congress. (Politico) Some Republicans besides Massie have signaled that they’re open to considering the resolution—US Representative French Hill of Arkansas said he wanted to “hear the debate.” (New York Post) President Trump, at a press conference alongside UFC CEO Dana White, called Massie a “stone cold loser” and said he’d stand by his SecDef. (CNN) Meanwhile, reports about the former Fox News host’s unusual tenure in the Pentagon continue: Three officials say his office kept track—on paper—of internet searches about candidates for promotion. Hegseth’s team reportedly Googled and logged incidents like allowing “a celebration that included rainbow flags.” (MS Now)
More midterms fallout
Even more Justice Department officials resigned: Brett Shumate headed DOJ’s civil division, and will join a lot of others who’ve decided to explore new opportunities as Democrats prepare to take over Congress. (Bloomberg) The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers urged US Senator Chuck Schumer of New York not to pursue the office of Senate majority leader, saying it was the “right moment for a new generation to lead.” (Politico) When asked yesterday, US Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland did not exactly rule out a run for the job. (Politico) Over in the House, US Representative Haley Stevens of Michigan spent time in the Republican cloakroom during votes yesterday. Stevens is not terribly popular with her Democratic colleagues after endorsing Republican Mike Rogers, who promptly lost the Senate race in her state to Abdul El-Sayed. (Washington Sun) House Republicans will choose between Steve Scalise and Jim Jordan when they decide on a new majority leader today. (Punchbowl News) And it looks like Lauren Boebert won’t return to DC next year: CNN called her race for her Democratic opponent, Eileen Laubacher. (CNN)
Administration perambulation
Trump said his unpopular war in Iran “militarily is effectively over,” signaling that the current stalemate will likely continue. (AP) The US moved aircraft from a base in Britain because of threats from Iran. The military pulled other aircraft from a different British base last month in response to Iranian threats. (Bloomberg) Play the hits: Sam Corcos, a former DOGE official working at the GSA, wants workers in its Technology Transformation Services office to email him about five things they did that day. (Washington Sun) USDA plans to tighten access to SNAP, “a change that is expected to render millions of additional Americans ineligible for the program.” (Politico) The US Supreme Court will allow border-wall construction in Texas’s Big Bend region that had been opposed by locals. (NBC News) XpresTest, a biosecurity firm in which Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. are recent investors, won a nearly $40 million contract to screen travelers for exposure to Ebola despite having “never worked with Ebola or provided biosecurity services abroad.” (ProPublica) Trump predicted embattled Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang will “be in good shape” despite an FBI investigation into his affair with an alleged Chinese spy. (Washington Sun) The President also mused on social media about whether the midterm elections might have been rigged. (NYT) Is short-term White House press secretary Katie Zacharia “angling for a second chance at the podium”? Hey, the job hasn’t been filled since she got canned five days into the gig. (New York Post)
Perfect Saturdays, by Daniella Byck
We’re entering cozy season, and what could be cozier than cuddling up to a fluffy Highland cow? Black Rock Farm in Frederick County offers a chance to greet their cohort of shaggy cattle during a 45-minute “Highland Hangout.” A farmer provides some education about the cows, and visitors then get to feed them treats and brush their luscious locks. The experience must be booked in advance and welcomes groups of up to six people. Prices are $200 from Monday through Thursday and $250 from Friday through Sunday.
Recently on Washingtonian dot com
• Former Punjab Grill chef Jaspratap “Jassi” Bindra will return to DC in January with Maati, a new regional Indian restaurant at the Wharf.
• Here’s what you need to know about the Spirit’s big playoff game against the Utah Royals on Saturday.
• Eebee’s owner Emily Brown and Andy’s Pizza founder Andy Brown are cousins. They’ve collaborated on a new limited-edition pie based on a staple from their family gatherings: crab dip.
• Patrick O’Connell, Questlove, Angela Bassett: It’s Dan About Town’s monthly roundup of photos from swanky local events.
Local news links
Car troubles
• A man drove his car onto the sidewalk at Lafayette Square and tried to fight with US Secret Service officers. (City Cast DC)
• Police in Fairfax say an Arizona man drove his GMC Sierra into a police car that was conducting a sobriety test on another driver on I-95 near Springfield on Sunday. The Sierra’s driver was then charged with DUI. (WUSA9)
• The Spotsylvania County Sheriff’s Office says it found open beer cans in the car of a teacher after receiving a tip that he’d bought alcohol on his way to school. (DC News Now)
• A car ended up on its side somehow in Georgetown. (PoPville)
Other local news
• Jamal Holtz was sworn in to the DC Council for what’s expected to be a short-term stay. (Washington Post)
• DC voters could consider a $25 minimum wage proposal during a special election next spring. (Washington Sun)
• A federal judge dismissed, with prejudice, DOJ’s lawsuit against Montgomery County over a law that restricts guns from many “places of public assembly.” (Fox 5)
• Speaking of which, a Lynchburg, Virginia, man accompanying a Liberty University religious studies class to Washington Hebrew Congregation got arrested after he brought a gun along. (WUSA9)
• Karen Attiah said she accepted a settlement from the Washington Post and won’t return to work there. (Golden Hour) Flashback: The former Post columnist won her job back in mediation this summer; the Post fired her last year. (Washingtonian)
• Yet another of those satirical Trump statues has appeared on the Mall. (Washington Post)
• Local business owners say they’ve been left in the lurch after a Christmas market planned in Sterling got canceled. (DC News Now)
• Virginia’s constitution still refers to the governor as a “he.” Get with the times, Virginia! (Virginia Mercury)
Things to Do
• Malaika Vaz moderates the first edition of the National Geographic Museum of Exploration’s new “Storytelling Nights” series.
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.
