Washington, D.C
Washington Post editorial board links DC mayor’s decision to remove BLM art to a ‘victory for the city’
The Washington Post editorial board defended Washington D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser’s controversial decision to remove the giant “Black Lives Matter” art covering a main city street near the White House.
Though many have complained about Bowser’s move, thinking it’s about bowing to Republicans’ opposition to Black Lives Matter, the board argued it’s smart as it will placate President Trump, whose administration is threatening the city’s independence from the federal government.
“It is not cowardice, as the mayor’s critics allege, but a practical attempt to protect D.C. from Republicans who are threatening the city’s autonomy for political purposes,” the Board wrote on Friday.
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The Washington Post editorial board argued that it’s the right move for D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser to replace Black Lives Matter art in order to placate President Trump. (Getty)
The giant yellow letters were painted on 16th Street NW in addition to the intersection being renamed to “Black Lives Matter Plaza” in the summer of 2020 during Trump’s first term.
The Post editorial board’s headline read, “D.C. can respect Black Lives Matter without street art.”
Bowser authorized the changes following days of chaotic protests at that location over police brutality following the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer and Breonna Taylor by Louisville police officers.
The mayor announced earlier this week that the plaza will be redesigned by students and artists, who are being tasked by the city to create new murals for area, sparking protests in and around the square.
Bowser’s call comes as Republicans in Congress have targeted the plaza. Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., recently introduced H.R. 1774, which, if passed, would “withhold certain apportionment funds from the District of Columbia unless the Mayor of the District of Columbia removes the phrase Black Lives Matter from the street symbolically designated as Black Lives Matter Plaza.”
The Post’s board argued that such attacks on the city by the federal government require the mayor to make these more minor concessions.
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Black Lives Matter Plaza will be replaced, Washington D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser recently announced. (Jacquelyn Martin, File)
The editorial stated, “But what Bowser understands — and what many of her critics seem unwilling to accept — is that she possesses little power to prevent Trump and his fellow Republicans from damaging the city. Her chief task now is to minimize that damage.”
The piece also mentioned Clyde’s bill specifically, pointing to it as evidence that GOP lawmakers are so opposed to the plaza that they’re “willing to deprive the city… of the resources it needs to function.”
The board also mentioned how Trump has recently “threatened” taking over the city to clean up crime, graffiti and homeless camps. He told reporters on Air Force One last month, “I think that we should run it strong, run it with law and order, make it absolutely, flawlessly beautiful.”
The editorial added that Bowser giving up BLM Plaza “seems to be paying off.” It continued, “The Post reported this week that the president has backed off his threatened executive order, thanks to ‘constructive conversations’ with the mayor’s staff. This is a victory for the city.”
The Post argued that this fight is about “choosing one’s battles wisely” and concluded with the idea that the city should “focus on the issues that affect people’s day-to-day lives: reducing crime, building affordable housing and creating a vibrant economy” rather than fixate on street art.
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Washington, D.C
What’s that noise? What you need to know about D.C. flyovers Friday and Saturday – WTOP News
Reagan National Airport will close for America 250 flyover rehearsals Friday and celebrations Saturday featuring the Thunderbirds, Blue Angels and more.
Reagan National Airport will close from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday for rehearsals ahead of this weekend’s America 250 celebrations, meaning people around D.C., Arlington and Alexandria may hear and see low-flying military aircraft.
According to Freedom 250 event organizers, Friday’s “Wings of Freedom” demonstrations over the National Mall will feature parachute teams, helicopters and military aircraft, including the U.S. Marine Corps’ MV-22 Osprey and F-35B, the Navy’s F-18F and F-35C, the Air Force’s F-22 Raptor, the Thunderbirds and a tri-bomber formation.
On Saturday, the FAA will close the airport from noon to midnight for the full celebration. All arrivals and departures at Reagan National are scheduled to end before noon.
Flyovers and demonstrations are scheduled throughout the afternoon and evening along the National Mall and Washington Monument grounds, including appearances by Air Force One, the Thunderbirds, Blue Angels, military aircraft fleet reviews, parachute demonstrations and B-2 stealth bombers.
Highlights include an Air Force One flyover scheduled for 7:03 p.m., a Thunderbirds demonstration beginning at 6:25 p.m., a tri-bomber formation at 6:02 p.m. and a stealth aircraft flyover at 7:38 p.m.
Friday’s schedule of flyovers and demonstration rehearsals along the National Mall and Washington Monument
- 10 a.m.: Golden Knights, Leap Frogs
- 10:15 a.m.: Army Helo Flyover
- 10:20 a.m.: USMC V-22 Osprey Demo
- 10:35 a.m.: USMC F-35B STOVL Demo
- 10:50 a.m.: USN F-18F Demo
- 11:10 a.m.: USN F-35C Demo Team
- 11:30 a.m.: USAF F-22 Raptor Demo
- 11:50 a.m.: NASA F-5s
- 12 p.m.: HUGE (1) Formation
- 12:05 p.m.: USAF Thunderbirds
- 12:55 p.m.: USAF Tri-Bomber
Saturday’s schedule of flyovers and demonstration along the National Mall and Washington Monument
- 1:14 p.m.: – NASA F-5 Flyover
- 1:24 p.m.: -NASA Fleet Review
- 1:44 p.m.: USCG Helo Flyover
- 1:54 p.m.: USCG Fixed Wing Flyover
- 2:09 p.m.: Golden Knights, Leap Frogs
- 2:29 p.m.: Army Helo Flyover
- 2:44 p.m.: USAF Fleet Review – Wave 1 – Heavies
- 2:54 p.m.: USAF Fleet Review – Wave 2 – AFSOC
- 3:04 p.m.: USAF Fleet Review – Wave 3 – Fighters
- 3:29 p.m.: Executive Rotary Wing Airlift
- 3:39 p.m.: USMC Fleet Review – Wave 1 – Rotary
- 3:49 p.m.: USMC Fleet Review – Wave 2 – Fixed Wing
- 3:59 p.m.: USN Fleet Review – Wave 1 – Rotary
- 4:09 p.m.: USN Fleet Review – Wave 2 – Fixed Wing
- 4:19 p.m.: USN Fleet Review – Wave 3 – Fighters
- 4:21 p.m.: USN F-18F Demonstration
- 4:59 p.m.: USN Blue Angels
- 5:26 p.m.: USMC MV-22 Osprey Demonstration
- 5:44 p.m.: USAF Fleet Review – Fighters
- 6:02 p.m.: USAF Tri-Bomber Formation
- 6:05 p.m.: USN F-35C Demonstration
- 6:25 p.m.: USAF Thunderbirds Demonstration
- 7:03 p.m.: Air Force One Flyover
- 7:07 p.m.: USAF Thunderbirds Delta Break
- 7:17 p.m.: HUGE 1 Flyover Led by the Newly Renovated Air Force One
- 7:38 p.m.: U.S. Stealth Airpower Flyover
- 7:39 p.m.: F-22 Raptor Demo
- 7:53 p.m.: F-22 Raptor in Afterburner
- 7:59 p.m.: B-1 Flyover
- 8:07 p.m.: B-1’s in Afterburner
- 8:11 p.m.: HUGE ONE Fly Over Review
- 8:22 p.m.: Golden Knights Twilight Jump
- 10:36 p.m.: B-1 Afterburner Night Pass
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An Air Force major was arrested in uniform on the steps of the Capitol after he called for the impeachment of President Donald Trump.
U.S. Capitol Police arrested Jason Watson, an active-duty service member, on Wednesday afternoon following remarks at a news conference where he said Trump and Vice President JD Vance should be removed from office.
The event was organized by the Removal Coalition, a group that lobbies members of Congress to impeach Trump, and attended by Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, who has repeatedly introduced articles of impeachment against Trump.
“I’m here with him because Rep. Green is the only member of Congress that has demonstrated the courage and conviction to … force a vote on articles of impeachment,” Watson said at the event. “If Congress followed his example, we could remove the entire Trump administration, but Congress remains unconvinced of the urgency and necessity for them to honor their oaths, so we must persuade them with our unrelenting, uncompromising civil resistance.”
Watson said he is not a Democrat and does not share policy positions with Green, who lost his re-election bid this year. Green’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Watson’s arrest.
Capitol Police said in a statement that it “is generally against the law for the public to demonstrate on the House Steps unless they are with a Member of Congress.”
“Yesterday afternoon, a man was escorted to the House Steps by a Member of Congress,” the statement said. “When the Member of Congress left the area, our officers gave the man lawful orders to stop the illegal demonstration or he would be arrested. The man refused our lawful orders.”
Capitol Police identified the man as Watson, adding that he was arrested on charges of “Crowding, Obstructing, and Incommoding” and that it is legal to protest in other spots on the Capitol grounds.
Service members are subject to stricter laws than the average citizen when it comes to protesting. The Uniform Code of Military Justice prohibits officers from “using contemptuous language towards the President, Vice president, the Secretaries of War and of a military department, Congress, and certain other officials,” according to an Air Force memo last year.
An Air Force spokesperson said in a statement Thursday: “Service members must comply with all laws, regulations and policies governing conduct and the wear of the uniform. All Department of the Air Force personnel are expected to uphold the highest standards of discipline and professionalism, both on and off duty.”
All service members, not just members of the Air Force, are prohibited from participating in “political activities” in uniform.
Watson’s criticism of Trump and Vance focused on the administration’s actions in Venezuela and Iran, calling them “an unconstitutional usurpation of Congress’ authority and a violation of the War Powers Clause.”
“These violations resulted in the deaths of 13 service members and injuries of hundreds more,” he said, referring to the number of U.S. military deaths tied to the Iran war. “For this, the president and vice president must be impeached, convicted and removed.”
Watson also called the administration’s immigration policies and tactics unconstitutional.
The Removal Coalition did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and Watson could not be reached.
President Donald Trump responded to criticism of a financial disclosure that listed $1.4 billion in crypto earnings largely driven by meme coins.
Berk Kutay Gökmen
02 July 2026•Update: 02 July 2026
US Defense Secretary Hegseth on Thursday faced protesters while hosting the Trump administration’s DC Safe and Beautiful Task Force ceremony in Washington DC.
During the ceremony at Meridian Hill Park, which saw the gathering of National Guardsmen, dozens of demonstrators gathered near the park to protest Hegseth.
Footage shows the demonstrators chanting a short distance away from where Hegseth and roughly 200 members of the National Guard had gathered in the park
In social media posts, one protester was seen holding a Palestinian flag, while another person was holding a sign that reads “arrest Hegseth.” The protesters want a “Free DC,” according to social media posts.
In his address to the National Guard, Hegseth said that “this background noise is perfect,” referring to the protests.
“It’s the sound of ingrates, of ingratitude—of people who are so blinded by ideology they can’t see law and order and common sense in front of them,” he said.
Meridian Hill Park was repaired by the National Park Service and the Interior Department as part of a larger initiative to restore and enhance federal parks and public spaces throughout the nation’s capital in preparation for America’s 250th anniversary, which falls on this Saturday, July 4.
Though such beautification projects are typically popular with the public, the current initiative has been controversial both for its choice of projects and the use of no-bid contracts to hire firms to do the work, sometimes with disappointing results.
The work aligns with President Donald Trump’s DC Safe and Beautiful Task Force, established by a March 2025 executive order that directs federal agencies to coordinate public safety and beautification efforts across Washington.
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