Washington, D.C
Trump Will Remake D.C.’s Culture in His Image
The last time Donald Trump won the presidency, there was a lot crowing in Washington’s beau monde about how the new administration would upend the city’s social life. D.C. has never been a particularly friendly town, but in 2016, its residents decided to take a harder stand than usual. The capital’s hostesses linked arms against any top Trump officials seeking invitations to their homes. The region’s restaurateurs, though expected to serve everyone, vowed to make a night on the town for Republicans as unpleasant as possible. And those in chattering classes remarked with much glee that at no point in the city’s recent history had the place been so socially divided.
The result was that, rather than integrate into Washington life, as staffers and officials from every other presidential administration have, Trump’s coterie was forced to build its own parallel society. Soon, largely undeveloped neighborhoods—Navy Yard and the Wharf prominent among them—became hot spots for young staffers. And no wonder. Those places fit well with Zoomer taste: new construction, rooftop pools, parking everywhere. Meanwhile, more senior officials colonized Kalorama, on the grounds that it was just like Georgetown, but even more insulated from the hateful public eye.
Eight years later, the situation is pretty much the same. D.C. exists as two parallel societies stuck within the bounds of late 2016. On one side, the greater part of the city is trapped in an Obama-nostalgia doom loop: Le Diplomate still dominates the scene on Fourteenth Street. The establishments of Dupont Circle are still celebrating Obergefell vs. Hodges as if the decision were just handed down last week. And, in Shaw, you can still find the odd “Chicago” bar, a tribute to the 2008 Obama campaigners who have long since left the neighborhood.
The Trump version of D.C. is no more vital. Those shiny buildings on the river are still obliviously humming along, worlds unto themselves. Mission in Navy Yard is still a hot bar with a certain sort of person, despite, or because of, its vulgarity. Shelly’s Back Room over by the White House has lost none of its luster, in large part because it is one of the only places in the capital that allows the public to smoke inside. The only major change in this world’s social setting from the first Trump presidency is a loss: the Trump International Hotel, which closed down shortly after the president’s inglorious departure in 2021. I can’t say I regret it: Every time I visited in those four years—whether for a gala, dinner, or some other evening event—I was always struck by how hollow, cavernous that main hall was.
How did the city get stuck in 2016 for so long? Typically, each president makes a mark on Washington’s local culture that survives his tenure, usually in the neighborhoods where his staffers settle. Bill Clinton brought in the crew that made Adams Morgan a hip area. George W. Bush oversaw the revival of Georgetown and Glover Park. And Barack Obama’s team gentrified the historically black neighborhoods around U Street. (Obama himself liked D.C. so much that he still lives here.) Trump, as I have said, built his own fantasy version of the city.
Subscribe Today
Get daily emails in your inbox
But something funny happened when Joe Biden took office in 2021. Rather than making his own mark on the city, here, as in so many other things, Biden was like a ghost, and the D.C. continued to function as if he were never here at all.
There are a few possible explanations for the cultural hole. The first is the fact that Biden was elected and took office during a pandemic. He famously campaigned out of his home in Delaware—where he spent much of his presidency anyway—and did not arrive in D.C. with an army of staffers looking for places to live. The second is related to the first: Hardly anyone in the federal government goes into the office anymore, meaning that there is little incentive to form a distinctively Bidenesque after-hours culture. And the third reason is the hazy temporality that surrounds all things Biden. No one was ever going to stick around for him.
Now that Trump is back for round two, everything will change. Once again, the city will renew itself. There is no stopping it now. There is no Resistance to lock the Trump administration out of polite society. For better or worse, Trump will remake Washington, D.C. in his image.
The U.S. Department of Defense confirmed Wednesday the National Guard will remain deployed in Washington, D.C., through Inauguration Day 2029.
Mayor Muriel Bowser and other city officials have been against deployment since it began last summer, but pushing back has been an uphill battle.
More than 5,000 National Guard troops are deployed in the city after President Donald Trump signed an executive order declaring a crime emergency, and that number swelled for the Fourth of July.
City leaders made it clear they want the National Guard to leave, but the Defense Department says the troops will stay through the end of the Trump administration.
City leaders argue the National Guard is unnecessary, the soldiers are not trained in law enforcement and it’s bad for business. A lawsuit filed by the D.C. attorney general was overturned on appeal pending further litigation.
“My understanding is that there’s going to be some sort of proceeding in September, and so the city is still litigating that we don’t want these National Guard troops from other states here,” D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson said.
On July 9, the D.C. Council sent letters to Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and U.S. Virgin Islands Gov. Albert Bryan asking them to withdraw their National Guard soldiers that were sent for the Fourth of July celebrations.
“We respectfully ask that you recall all Michigan National Guard personnel as soon as practicable and decline any extension of their current deployment,” Council wrote to Whitmer.
“To have National Guard troops sent here from states across the nation who are armed, who are not trained in our laws, does not help us advance public safety and is not the right path forward,” Councilmember Brooke Pinto said.
The Council did not reach out to any other governors with troops deployed to Washington.
Bowser declined to comment on the extension of the guard’s deployment.
News4 reached out to both governors’ offices for comment but has not heard back.
Washington, D.C
Benjamin Netanyahu to fly to DC for Graham Lindsay’s funeral, meeting with Donald Trump | The Jerusalem Post
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to fly to Washington, DC, on Saturday night, Israeli sources told The Jerusalem Post on Wednesday.
Netanyahu’s visit would mark the first official trip to Washington since the war with Iran, with his last visit in February.
During a recent phone call made by Netanyahu to congratulate Trump on the 250th anniversary of US independence, the two leaders agreed to “meet soon.”
Netanyahu’s main commitment during this upcoming trip will be attending Graham’s funeral, who passed away on Sunday after “a brief and sudden illness.”
Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, mourned Graham in a statement on Sunday.
“Lindsey understood that the security of Israel and America are inseparable. He devoted his life to defending America, strengthening our alliance and standing up for the free world,” Netanyahu said in his statement.
“Israel has lost one of its greatest friends. America has lost a great patriot. I have lost a beloved friend.”
“Our hearts are with Lindsey’s family and with the American people at this difficult time. May his values and initiatives continue to guide us toward victory and peace, and may his memory forever be a blessing.”
Miriam Sela-Eitam contributed to this article.
WASHINGTON (7News) — Some D.C. residents told 7News they are fed up with the no-parking signs that have been added in front of their homes.
For the first time in 70 years, the view outside Anita Marsh’s home has changed.
“It’s very emotional,” said Marsh. “To be in a place where there’s no access to my door, no one can legally park for me to enter and exit my home. It’s frustrating, but more importantly, it’s upsetting. It’s very upsetting. I find it heartless.”
ALSO READ | DC considers tighter rat control restrictions after poison, tracking and trash concerns
Video from Marsh showed what she woke up to on Monday morning. She said the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) installed no parking signs in front of her home.
“How do I walk? How do I get into my house? I’m not very ambulatory,” said Marsh. “I have mobility challenges. So what happens?”
Neighbors about a mile away, over on Kimi Gray Court, reached out with the same frustrations. That’s where 7News met Aaron Harris.
“DDOT put these signs up, these signs, and they are ticketing people who are trying to park in front of their home because they have multiple cars,” said Harris.
Both neighborhoods feel that access to their home will now cost them.
“I’m very nervous because also financial impact is on a retiree,” said Marsh.
7News also got a call from businesses on MLK Jr. Avenue in Anacostia who said DDOT hit them with changes, too. 7News met Ronald Moton in front of his Gogo museum.
“They bring a bus lane without talking to us and take away 29 parking spaces,” said Moton.
Moton said business owners and customers have been hit with $200 tickets.
“This is a community trying to build itself up and survive,” said Moton. “You cannot come and dump stuff like this on us without talking to us.”
“We can’t afford to pay $90 a week or $180 or $270 per week because we’re in violation in front of a property that wasn’t zoned this way,” said Harris. “At least we didn’t know it was owned that way until the signs went up and they started getting ticketed.”
“I’m very scared. I’m very scared. And very upset,” said Marsh. “I’m not going to be able to stay in my house. Then I’m going to be forced to go elsewhere. Because I’m not going to be able to enter and exit my house.”
7News reached out to DDOT and Councilman Charles Allen, who chairs D.C.’s Transportation and Environment Committee, and asked about the no-parking signs community members feel came out of nowhere. 7News has not heard back from either yet.
-
Idaho1 minute agoHow the City of Boise tests water samples to ensure the Boise River runs clean
-
Illinois7 minutes agoData center fears mount after Illinois village residents prepare for the worst
-
Indiana13 minutes agoStatewide Silver Alert issued for two missing Indiana children
-
Iowa19 minutes agoWeight loss drug needles creating safety risk for eastern Iowa law enforcement
-
Kansas25 minutes ago
Kansas Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 winning numbers for July 15, 2026
-
Kentucky31 minutes agoCyclosporiasis spreads across Kentucky
-
Louisiana37 minutes agoLouisiana pastor ordered to stay away from home of man he attacked
-
Maine43 minutes agoIn Maine, Bobby Charles vs. Hannah Pingree is the race that matters | Opinion
