Two weeks ago, the kiosk near 18th Street and Columbia Road NW became a chalkboard where locals could leave messages for outgoing president Obama. Now, the sign may have to be taken down for a deep cleaning.
Someone vandalized the sign with red nail polish earlier this week, according to the Adams Morgan BID. The organization tweeted about the vandalization Wednesday.
“Suppose it was bound to happen eventually,” the BID tweeted. “Some genius decided to leave a note in red nail polish.”
Though the group is brushing up on its “nail polish removal tactics,” a representative said the sign may have to be removed soon for cleaning.
(Updated at 4:56 p.m.) The presidential motorcade rolled down 14th Street this afternoon as President Obama headed to the site of his latest town hall meeting.
Obama is holding a town hall meeting hosted by Disney’s television networks at the Studio Theatre (1501 14th St. NW) this afternoon. The town hall meeting is titled “The President and The People: A National Conversation” and is scheduled to air nationwide on ESPN and ABC tonight at 8 p.m.
The meeting will focus on racial issues, justice, policing and gun violence.
A crowd of people eager to catch a glimpse of the president lined the sidewalks as police shut down streets just before 2:30 p.m. this afternoon. Obama’s motorcade arrived just before 3 p.m. to cheers from the crowd, but the president stayed out of view.
14th Street between Rhode Island Ave. to about Q St. NW were closed for nearly an hour and a half today. The roads reopened just before 5 p.m.
Photos by Alyse Mier
DC’s “Taxation Without Representation” plates will go on the president’s limo. (Luis Gomez Photos)
From Rachel Nania. Check out her blog, Sear, Simmer & Stir. Follow Nania on Twitter @rnania, email her at rachel[AT]borderstan.com.
On Monday, Borderstan’s own Kathryn Ciano presented her best arguments for why President Obama should ride around (in DC, mind you) on Inauguration Day with a DC license plate that reads, “Taxation Without Representation.”
Even the DC Council pushed for the plates – Chairman Phil Mendelson and Mary Cheh (D-Ward 3) paid a special trip to the White House last week to speak with administration officials on the matter.
Well now Ciano’s wish, and the wish of others, will come true. The White House announced Tuesday that Obama’s official vehicles will begin using the “Taxation Without Representation” license plates during the inauguration this weekend.
In an article by the Associated Press, the White House says that Obama has lived in the District for four years and has seen “how patently unfair it is for families in DC to work hard, raise children and pay taxes, without having a vote in Congress.”
The same article reports the symbolic license plates were created in 2000.
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President Barack Obama talks to small business owners at Taylor Gourmet on 14th Street NW this morning. At far left is David Mazza; to Obama's right is Casey Patten. (Image Courtesy Taylor Gourmet)
From Rachel Nania. Check out her blog, Sear, Simmer & Stir. Follow Nania on Twitter@rnania, email her at [email protected]
The President (yes, Barack Obama) made a pit-stop for lunch this afternoon at Taylor Gourmet’s 14th Street location for a small round-table discussion with four local business owners, including the gourmet deli’s owners, Casey Patten and David Mazza.
President Obama spent his lunch break listening to concerns from the group of selected small business owners – concerns he plans to take to Congress this afternoon. (In November Obama and his daughters made a shopping trip to Kramerbooks & Afterwords Cafe on Small Business Saturday.)
“We discussed employee tax credits and all things that will help small businesses grow,” said Patten, who stressed the importance of increased wages and raises for employees of small businesses.
President Obama’s trip is all part of his small business “To Do List” – A list that encourages Congress to pass legislation that gives a 10 percent income tax credit to firms that create new jobs or increase wages in 2012.
“Little by little we are rebuilding our economy and it’s starting with these guys,” said Bridget Bean, director of the Washington Metropolitan Area Office of the U.S. Small Business Association and coordinator of today’s meeting.
“It was really an honor to be apart of this,” added Patten. “It was a lot of fun and it happened on my birthday, so it doesn’t get much better.”
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UPDATE: NBC has video.
Motorcades we get by the handfuls in this neighborhood: the president, the vice president (“Hey, Joe!”) and visiting heads of state. But a presidential visit to a 17th Street restaurant is still news, and tonight President Mrs. Obama ate dinner at Komi. Located at 1509 17th Street NW (just north of P Street), Komi is often mentioned as one of DC’s best eateries.
So, here is a little info on the 1.0-mile trip (says Google Maps) from 1600 Pennsylvania up to Borderstan, courtesy of the White House press pool:
At 6.58 the motorcade departed the White House en route to Komi, where the Obamas are having a date night. People gathered on a few corners near WH on foot and on Segways (sp?) Observed as we turned up 16th Street. As we rolled up 16th-no sirens and stopping for lights-most pedestrians ignored us but on some faces you could see the fact that it was an Obama motorcade registering.
Arrived at restaurant at about 7:08. (more…)
“Snow Day.” Borderstan… looking east down the 1400-block of Corcoran Street NW. (Photo: Luis Gomez, One Photograph A Day.)
Monday was a beautiful, bright snowday in Washington… the only real snowstorm we have had all winter. So, we were curious to find out here in Borderstan how many readers went to work–or not. I have lived in Washington for 16+ years and this tends to be a stay-at-home city even when snow merely threatens.
