Free Republic

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker this morning got some rare Democratic support for his high-profile push to eliminate most state workers' collective barganing rights -- from former D.C. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty. Fenty made his comments as a guest on MSNBC's "Morning Joe," making an in-studio appearance in New York with takeover mogul and ex-"car czar" Steven Rattner and former Republican presidential candidate Pat Buchanan. When discussion turned to Walker's anti-union push, Fenty jumped right in. "This is kind of what I faced in four years as mayor," Fenty told hosts Mike Barnicle and Mika Brzezinski. "He's right on the substance,...

With the election of Barack Obama as President the United States was supposed to be transitioning to the post racial America. Unfortunately for the children attending the public schools of the District of Columbia, someone forgot to tell their parents. Earlier this month the voters of the nation’s capital threw out Adrian Fenty, perhaps the best mayor they have ever had. Why? Because of soaring crime rates, plummeting school test scores or a surging unemployment rate? No. Rather, Adrian Fenty, a black mayor, was fired from his job because he hired the best people possible for the jobs in his...

It turns out Adrian Fenty did win the D.C. mayoral primary on Tuesday -- just not the one he had expected. D.C. Board of Elections and Ethics Public Affairs Manager Alysoun McLaughlin, who has forgotten what sleep is after the past week, announced at the crack of 3 a.m. today that Fenty had received 822 write-in votes in the Republican primary, enough to make him the GOP winner. Fenty has until 4:45 p.m. today to claim the prize, at which point I assume the hard-working DCBOEE crew will lock up for the weekend and go have a stiff drink. Fenty...

D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee announced Friday that she has fired 241 teachers, including 165 who received poor appraisals under a new evaluation system that for the first time holds some educators accountable for student improvement in standardized test scores. "Every child in a District of Columbia public school has a right to a highly effective teacher -- in every classroom, of every school, of every neighborhood, of every ward, in this City," Rhee said in a statement, announcing the first year of results from the revamped evaluation, known as IMPACT. "That is our commitment. Today . . ....

Voting on the proposed contract between the District and its 4,000 public school teachers concludes Wednesday, and even educators opposed to the pact, which will trigger major changes in how they are managed and paid, expect it to be ratified. "A lot of people say they like it. They like the money," said Tom O'Rourke, a veteran history teacher and union activist at Roosevelt High School who voted no because, he said, the pact has too many vague, open-ended promises. The contract offer, which requires the approval of the D.C. Council, would give teachers a 21.6 percent salary increase through...

The D.C. Council has passed a measure to legalize medical marijuana, sending the bill to Washington Mayor Adrian Fenty. Under the measure passed Tuesday, the nation’s capital would join 14 states that allow medical marijuana. Patients with chronic illnesses such as AIDS or cancer could obtain marijuana with a doctor’s recommendation. It would be given out at five to eight distribution centers.

Mayor pushed into apology for honoring 'ex-gays' First, the mayor of Washington, D.C., honored the executive director of a leading "ex-gay" organization, then, under pressure from homosexual activists, he apologized for issuing the honor. Mafara Hobson, a spokeswoman for D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty, explained to the Washington Post that the award was actually a "staff-level error." "We apologize for the error as it runs contrary to the mayor's vision of a more open and inclusive city," Hobson said. "The mayor is proud of his ardent support of the LGBT community."

Education: A merit-pay plan for teachers in the nation's capital is being dragged down by its costs. More choice would give families what they need — and would be a whole lot cheaper.

Until Brian Betts mysteriously failed to appear at work Thursday morning, this is what his many admirers knew about him: He was the energetic new principal of a long-troubled urban school and, within a D.C. school system desperate for heroes, a superstar. But by the end of that day, worried colleagues had found him shot dead in his Silver Spring home, and the upbeat narrative of Betts's two decades of work had become a tragic tale. The celebrated educator is now at the improbable center of a murder mystery. His blue Nissan Xterra is missing, as is some property in...

<p>WASHINGTON, D.C. - D.C. Police sources tell FOX 5 that radio communications are down citywide in the District, and police officers on the street have no way to receive or respond to calls via radio.</p>

Average cost of sheltering a single homeless family in D.C.: $2,500-$3,700 a monthBy Mike Riggs 03/25/10 at 9:33 AM According to a study released today by the Department of Housing and Urban Development and reported by USA Today, it’s cheaper to put homeless families in real homes than it is to house them in shelters: Many communities probably don’t know that they are spending as much “to maintain a cot in a gymnasium with 100 other cots” as it would cost to rent an efficiency apartment, says Dennis Culhane, a University of Pennsylvania professor who studies housing policies. “We are...

On Capitol Hill, all eyes have been focused on the House, as efforts to pass healthcare reform have grown increasingly dramatic. But a less-watched debate began in the Senate Tuesday, which offered a second chance for the Washington, D.C. private school voucher program that Congress phased out last year. The effort, however, was quickly squashed by a vote Tuesday night, with most Democrats voting against it along with Republican Olympia Snowe of Maine. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid promised in January that he would allow debate about the program on the Senate floor. And on Tuesday, the Senate began considering...

WASHINGTON | The football players at Calvin Coolidge Senior High School, Mayor Adrian Fenty and a room full of cheering staff needed only one word to describe her: coach. Natalie Randolph, a 29-year-old biology and environmental sciences teacher, was introduced Friday as the coach of the school's Coolidge Colts. She's believed to be the nation's only female head coach of a high school varsity football team. "While I'm proud to be part of what this all means," Randolph said, "being female has nothing to do with it. I love football. I love football, I love teaching, I love these kids....

Even though his cable TV news network may not have that many viewers in relative terms to his competitors, MSNBC's David Shuster apparently has some clout when it comes to getting things done in Washington, D.C. - at least on a municipal level. Shuster, making effort to give his viewers some "perspective" of his personal experience with the reason record-breaking snowfall in Washington, D.C., showed pictures of scenes near his Washington, D.C. home - complete with unplowed snow and a downed tree on MSNBC Feb. 12. "And to give you some perspective on what it's been like for all of...

WASHINGTON - As the region braces for another major storm, one local government is having trouble keeping their plows on the roads, WTOP has learned. As many as 60 of the District's snow plows are not working -- bad news for thousands of residents still waiting for their streets to be cleared. According to an internal email obtained by WTOP, 25 percent of the District's snow plow fleet is down and they're having trouble getting replacement parts. D.C. is also now rationing their salt supply. The email states they'll have enough to get through the upcoming storm. DDOT has 9,000...

WASHINGTON - As the region braces for another major storm, one local government is having trouble keeping their plows on the roads, WTOP has learned. As many as 60 of the District's snow plows are not working -- bad news for thousands of residents still waiting for their streets to be cleared.

... The drive for gay marriage is ... forcing unwanted change within the Catholic Church. Last month, Washington D.C.'s City Council passed legislation legalizing gay marriage. Mayor Adrian Fenty, a Democrat, quickly signed the bill. To become law—which could happen as early as March—the legislation must undergo a congressional review period. By passing gay marriage, the City Council has put the Catholic Church, or more accurately, the Archdiocese of Washington, in an awkward position. Either the church will have to recognize gay marriage or it will be forced to abandon a large portion of its charitable programs. That's because the...

D.C. mayor signs same-sex ‘marriage’ legislation Unitarian Universalist pastor Rob Hardies poses for a picture with Mayor Adrian Fenty. Credit: All Souls Church. Washington D.C., Dec 19, 2009 / 06:57 am (CNA).- Mayor Adrian Fenty of Washington, D.C., has signed a measure recognizing same-sex “marriage” in the District. The law has been criticized for redefining marriage and also for its lack of strong religious freedom protections for those who do not approve of such unions.Fenty signed the measure at the Unitarian Universalist All Souls Church in the northwest part of the District.In his remarks at the signing, provided to CNA...

Mayor Adrian M. Fenty will sign legislation Friday to legalize same-sex marriage in the District at a bill-signing ceremony so historic that his staff scrambled to find the perfect location Thursday. Would it be All Souls Unitarian Church, a Northwest house of worship known for its diversity, liberalism and welcoming of same-sex couples? Would it be Covenant Baptist Church, a predominantly black church in Southwest where husband-and-wife team of Dennis and Christine Wiley serve as co-pastors and support gay marriage? Or would it be a secular site? Late in the day, Katie Loughary, executive director at All Souls, said it...

Congress appears likely to keep the D.C. voucher program closed to new students but open to current ones, curtailing the hopes of advocates who had pressed for a full revival of the controversial program. The news is buried deep within a thousand-page omnibus spending bill released Monday by a joint conference of House and Senate Appropriations Committee members. The proposal allocates $13.2 million to vouchers and would tighten accountability measures for schools that participate in the program, which provides low-income D.C. students with up to $7,500 to attend private schools. Bringing further upheaval to the program, the Washington Scholarship Fund,...

RICHMOND | The governors of Virginia and Maryland, both Catholics, said Tuesday that it would be wrong for the church to suspend or reduce social services in the nation's capital if the District approves gay marriage. Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine and Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley criticized the Catholic Archdiocese of Washington's response to the District's gay marriage proposal during a joint appearance on Washington radio station WTOP. The D.C. Council is expected to approve gay marriage next month. The archdiocese says that unless the proposal is amended to add a religious exemption, its Catholic Charities won't be able to continue...

The D.C. Council introduced a marriage equality bill on Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2009. Public hearings were held on Oct. 26 and Nov. 2 and supporters of marriage for same-sex couples significantly outnumbered those who testified against it. The full Council is expected to take an initial vote on Dec. 1 with a final vote by the end of the year.

WASHINGTON - D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty's use of government resources to facilitate his recreational activities isn't limited to a police escort while he trains with his bike team. The mayor has used a federal Homeland Security vehicle to transport himself and his bike to at least 14 races in the past two years. The District's Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency has two large SUVs, which are detailed to the city from the U.S. Government Services Administration. According to records obtained by WTOP through the Freedom of Information Act, the mayor's Executive Protection Unit has signed out one or both...

Attorney General Eric Holder tries to kill a TV ad supporting D.C. school vouchers. President Obama isn't taking kindly to a television ad that criticizes his opposition to a popular scholarship program for poor children, and his administration wants the ad pulled. Former D.C. Councilmember Kevin Chavous of D.C. Children First said October 16 that U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder had recently approached him and told him to kill the ad. The 30-second ad, which has been airing on FOX News, CNN, MSNBC, and News Channel 8 to viewers in D.C., Maryland, and Virginia, urges the president to reauthorize the...

Kevin Chavous is an African American and former Democratic city council member from Washington, D.C. He says he’s an Obama supporter, but he is distinctly unhappy with the president. Elections may have consequences, but no one expected that the White House would be so brazenly petty as to allow poor minority children in the nation’s worst school district to become the victims of political score-settling. That’s exactly what happened when the Obama administration killed off the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program several months ago. Of course, if the White House thought that it could pay off the powerful teachers’ unions, and...

The D.C. Council voted Tuesday to block Ximena Hartsock from becoming the next director of the Department of Parks and Recreation, aggravating the tension between the council and the mayor and casting fresh doubt on the future of the troubled agency. After a long debate, the council voted 7 to 5 to reject Hartsock and remove her as the head of an agency that has had seven permanent or interim directors in the past decade. It was the first time since Fenty took office in 2007 that the council had rejected one of his nominees ...The vote followed a contentious...

A massive layoff of teachers and support staff at D.C. public schools triggered chaos outside of McKinley High School Friday afternoon. The melee happened after school let out, as students and parents filled McKinley's parking. Many were upset about the layoffs of 388 school employees, including 229 teachers. "The students were emotional, you know, they were upset to see their teachers being escorted by the police officers, knowing that they did nothing," said Saymendy Lloyd, a parent activist. "Why do you choose to do it at the time the children are out there and you do not expect to have...

A key circuit on the train track near Monday's derailment in Washington, D.C., was apparently not operating as it should have been, raising the possibility that the Metro train that crashed into another one may not have known to slow down, accident investigators said today. Investigators tested six circuits between the two stations where the crash occurred. Five of those performed as expected, according to National Transportation Safety Board investigator Deborah Hersman. Such circuits let trains know how fast to go and provide them with information about whether there's another train up ahead. But one circuit showed what Hersman described...

D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee, following through on promises to dismiss teachers deemed ineffective, has fired about 250 tenured and novice instructors this week for poor performance or failure to obtain a license, union officials said yesterday.... The dismissal of 80 tenured teachers is a landmark of sorts for the school system, which historically has fired only a handful of instructors each year for poor performance. ...

WASHINGTON - D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty continues to travel out of town, keeping his whereabouts a secret from the public. A spokesperson for Fenty refused to say where the mayor is today, whether or not he's in the country, or how long he will be gone. Even people close to Fenty aren't aware of his travel schedule. Fenty's spokesperson Mafara Hobson wrote that the mayor is on a "personal trip" and declined to answer any other questions. Fenty recently returned from an undisclosed trip to the Middle East. When asked by WTOP, Fenty said the trip was "basically a family...

The District has installed a heater at the East Potomac Pool, the outdoor aquatics facility Mayor Adrian M. Fenty sometimes uses to train for triathlons. Out of the city's 19 outdoor pools, it's the only one that has received the upgrade, which cost $75,000. John Stokes, a spokesman for the Department of Parks and Recreation, said the installation is "part of an extended outdoor pool-season pilot." He said the city is hoping to "maximize and expand pool services for District swimmers" at its premier pools: East Potomac, Banneker and Anacostia.

Fighting to save the District's popular school-voucher program, some 1,000 parents, pupils and politicians gathered near Mayor Adrian Fenty's office on Wednesday to protest Congress' plans to end school choice in Washington. That same day, the Senate approved a $4,500 voucher for cars, encouraging citizens to trade in their old automobiles for newer ones that burn less fuel. So, Congress thinks that vouchers for schools are bad, but vouchers for cars are good. Slashing school vouchers spares teachers' unions from competition. On the other hand, car vouchers are supposed to boost demand for cars built by the United Auto Workers....

Mayor Adrian Fenty continues to travel out of town, keeping his whereabouts a secret from the public. A spokesperson for Fenty refused to say where the mayor is today, whether or not he's in the country, or how long he will be gone. Even people close to Fenty aren't aware of his travel schedule. D.C. Council Chairman Vincent Gray, who is first in the line of succession to the mayor and the second-highest ranking elected official in town, is in the dark. Fenty recently returned from an undisclosed trip to the Middle East. When asked by WTOP, Fenty said the...

Supporters of a celebrated school voucher program in Washington rallied near the mayor's office Wednesday to save the scholarships from being slashed by Congress -- nearly 40 percent of whose members send their own children to private schools. An estimated 1,000 parents, children and community leaders attended the afternoon protest in Washington's Freedom Plaza, where they called on D.C. politicians to help preserve a federal school choice program that currently assists more than 1,700 students with scholarships worth up to $7,500. "Several years ago many of us in this good city worked very hard to get a program going with...

Michelle Rhee, Chancellor of the struggling public school system in the District of Columbia, has already won bi-partisan admiration for her energetic and innovative efforts to shake up one of the most troubled educational establishments in the country. Now she deserves further plaudits for her courageous clarity on the issue of vouchers. Most public education bureaucrats reflexively oppose vouchers as a threat to their monopoly, denouncing any use of government funds to allow poor children to choose parochial or private school alternatives to failing neighborhood schools. Ms. Rhee, however, fearlessly spoke up against efforts by Congressional Democrats to kill a...

Democrats are taking away funding for DC area kids

Democrats are once again proving that "choice" as it relates to children applies only to killing them, not to parents choosing where to educate them. Sorry, but for pro-choice politicians to argue against school choice shows that they care only about the teachers unions that elect them, and not for the lives of the people they represent. The Washington Post called congressional democrats on their hypocrisy in an editorial today: REP. DAVID R. Obey (Wis.) and other congressional Democrats should spare us their phony concern about the children participating in the District's school voucher program. If they cared for the...

Government Spending: Did anyone really think $787 billion would be enough to quench the Democratic Congress' thirst for play money from the taxpayers? Now they want $410 billion more.In addition to solar water heaters for rural Puerto Rico and the Raul Alvarez Golf Course in Austin, Texas, Obama administration sources say the U.S. is also planning to relieve taxpayers of $900 million for Gaza, much of which can be expected to land in the pockets of the terrorist group Hamas, which runs the region. To a family being foreclosed on, or a businesswoman forced by tough times to close up...

Boehner Condemns Provision Tucked in Democrats’ Secret $410 Billion Spending Bill to Kill D.C. School Choice Program Language Designed to Eliminate Program Was Kept Secret by Democratic Congressional Leaders for Weeks, Never Passed by Committee Washington, Feb 23House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) today condemned a provision tucked into Congressional Democrats’ $410 billion “omnibus” spending bill that would phase out the District of Columbia’s groundbreaking school choice program, which has provided educational opportunities for thousands of inner-city children since it was established with bipartisan support in 2004. Boehner issued the following statement: “The D.C. school choice program has provided hope...

WASHINGTON (AP) — While senators worked into the night on an economic stimulus plan, President Barack Obama could sit back and relax — if only for a couple of hours — to observe a popular dance theater group at the Kennedy Center. Though it was announced earlier in the day the president would attend, the Obamas picked the right moment to reward themselves with the show. They left around a flurry of news that lawmakers had reached a deal on a stimulus measure at the heart of the president's plan for reviving the economy. The Obamas were accompanied by Attorney...

WASHINGTON - From the steam grates of Pennsylvania Avenue to the porticoes of the city's grand buildings, homeless Washingtonians who live inside the nation's tightest security zone are being encouraged to decamp during the inauguration for shelters in the city's outer neighborhoods. The security sweeps will probably begin Monday. Buses will make one-way trips to two of the District's largest shelters, which will remain open round-the-clock, said D.C. Council member Tommy Wells (D-Ward 6). "Everyone has to be out of the perimeter by then," Wells said.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 15, 2009 – Operation Gratitude, a troop-support group, is joining forces with Washington, D.C., Mayor Adrian M. Fenty and thousands of volunteers from across the country on Jan. 19’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday to assemble care kits for servicemembers deployed overseas. The effort, called "A Day of Service for Our Military," allows for people to show their support and express their appreciation to those in the military, organizers said. “We are thrilled to partner in this event, as this is a great way to introduce more Americans to the great work of Operation Gratitude and...

By Mary Beth Sheridan Washington Post Staff Writer Monday, December 22, 2008 Officials are casting doubt on an early projection that 4 million to 5 million people could jam downtown Washington on Inauguration Day, saying it is more likely that the crowd will be about half that size. D.C. authorities said the earlier estimates, provided by Mayor Adrian M. Fenty (D), were based on speculation surrounding the historic nature of the swearing-in of Barack Obama as the nation's first African American president. After weeks of checking with charter bus companies, airlines and other sources, they're reassessing. "It's more of an...

A key D.C. councilwoman expressed concern Wednesday about a new executive order from Mayor Adrian Fenty that appears to grant Police Chief Cathy Lanier broad authority to issue subpoenas. The order, signed quietly by Fenty last month and posted on the city’s Web site last week, gives the chief the power to probe “any municipal matter” and allows Lanier to delegate her subpoena power “to her subordinates.” Councilwoman Mary Cheh, D-Ward 3, a constitutional law professor and former prosecutor, wrote a letter Wednesday to Fenty, asking him to explain the order. “I have grave concerns over the prospect that this...

As in many other areas, the biggest education debates are happening within the Democratic Party. On the one hand, there are the reformers like Joel Klein and Michelle Rhee, who support merit pay for good teachers, charter schools and tough accountability standards. On the other hand, there are the teachers’ unions and the members of the Ed School establishment, who emphasize greater funding, smaller class sizes and superficial reforms. During the presidential race, Barack Obama straddled the two camps. One campaign adviser, John Schnur, represented the reform view in the internal discussions. Another, Linda Darling-Hammond, was more likely to represent...

In 11th grade, Allante Rhodes spent 50 minutes a day in a Microsoft Word class at Anacostia Senior High School in Washington. He was determined to go to college, and he figured that knowing Word was a prerequisite. But on a good day, only six of the school's 14 computers worked. He never knew which ones until he sat down and searched for a flicker of life on the screen. "It was like Russian roulette," says Rhodes, a tall young man with an older man's steady gaze. If he picked the wrong computer, the teacher would give him a handout....

Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee told the D.C. Council yesterday that the District needs to completely rethink its approach to preventing school violence, with a better trained security force but also by teaching students to manage conflicts before they spiral out of control. Rhee spoke to the council a day after fights among rival groups at Anacostia High School left five students injured, including three with stab wounds. Flooding school corridors with more police or private security guards is not the answer, she said. Students feel less safe in schools filled with guards, she said, and dollars are better invested in...

Chancellor Michelle Rhee told the DC Council yesterday that the District needs to completely rethink its approach to preventing school violence, with a better trained security force but also by teaching students to manage conflicts before they spiral out of control. Rhee spoke to the council a day after fights among rival groups at Anacostia High School left five students injured, including three with stab wounds. Flooding school corridors with more police or private security guards is not the answer, she said. Students feel less safe in schools filled with guards, she said, and dollars are better invested in teaching...

Today Mayor Adrian M. Fenty, joined by members of the Council of the District of Columbia and Acting Attorney General Peter J. Nickles introduced new emergency and temporary legislation to further amend the District’s firearms laws. “This new legislation is the second step in the process to do all that we can to minimize handgun violence in the District,” said Mayor Fenty. “These actions will continue to protect our citizens from gun violence while respecting the Second Amendment.” “We believe that any legitimate concerns by Congress on District gun laws should satisfied by the new laws,” said Acting Attorney General...

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