Obama Inauguration Goes into the Toilet
AP's Frederic Frommer gets to the seat of the problem: "Bathroom Break: Will inauguration have enough?" To Conrad Harrell of port-a-potty toilet supplier Don's Johns, Tuesday's inauguration of Barack Obama will be historic, but not in the way you might think. "This is the largest temporary restroom event in the history of the United States," he said. I'm wondering if there will ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on January 16, 2009 13:50
National Mall Disrepair
CNN features, on the 4th of July no less, a piece entitled "National Mall in monumental disrepair, activists say." This gathering place known as America's "front yard" stretches from the Capitol to the Potomac River and is home to the Jefferson and Lincoln memorials and Washington Monument, but it's starting to look like "an old rundown, worn-out mall that looks ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on July 5, 2008 08:59
Where’s the Military’s Museum?
Ralph Peters observes, Today, the Newseum - a 250,000-square-foot homage to journalism that cost $450 million to build - opens on Pennsylvania Avenue, midway between the White House and the Capitol. What's wrong with this picture? Other than the (symbolic?) fact that the building's an architectural mishmash, it's this: There's no museum in the vicinity of the National Mall dedicated to ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on April 11, 2008 14:03
D.C. Retrocession Redux
Cato's William Niskanen argues in today's Washington Examiner, as I have numerous times in this space, that the solution to the lack of congressional representation for D.C. residents is not an unconstitutional single vote in the House but rather retrocession to Maryland. Mayor Adrian Fenty might not like it, but retrocession would be superior for most District residents on political, fiscal ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on July 5, 2007 11:28
U.S. Embassy in Iraq to be Biggest, Most Expensive, Ever
The almost-complete U.S. Embassy in Iraq is a sight to behold. The new U.S. Embassy in Baghdad will be the world's largest and most expensive foreign mission, though it may not be large enough or secure enough to cope with the chaos in Iraq. The Bush administration designed the 104-acre compound — set to open in September in what today is ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on May 20, 2007 07:49
National Mall Morphing Into a Monument of Monstrosity
Noting the recent groundbreaking on a Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial, Radley Balko reflects on the proliferation of monuments on the National Mall. Plans are also in the works for an African-American History Museum on the National Mall and a memorial to President Eisenhower. And it's probably just a matter of time before conservatives in Congress again begin agitating for a ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on November 21, 2006 15:49
Washington Monument Evacuated After Bomb Threat
The Washington Monument was evacuated about an hour ago after a low credibility bomb threat. Washington Monument Evacuated (AP) The Washington Monument was evacuated Friday after a bomb threat was called in to local police. U.S. Park Police Sgt. Scott Fear said the call came in at 2:24 p.m. EDT and the monument was evacuated a short time later. Bomb-sniffing dogs ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on October 7, 2005 15:32
