News Archive - September 24, 2009

Interim President Of Montgomery College Goes Into Damage Control

The interim president of Montgomery College says he's trying to rebuild bridges burned by the school's last president.

Dr. Hercules Pickney had just retired as the vice president of Montgomery College's Germantown campus when he was asked to serve as interim president for the entire school...

Maryland Slots Commission Grants First License

Maryland's slot machine commission has approved the state's first slot machine license at a horse racing track on the Eastern Shore.

The vote follows a positive background investigation into the Ocean Downs track near Ocean City.

Now the owner, William Rickman, can move forward with h...

D.C. Council Member's Chief Of Staff Arrested, Faces Bribery Charges

D.C. Council Member Jim Graham's (D-Ward 1) chief of staff, Ted G. Loza, was arrested Thursday morning. Loza was arrested by federal agents on bribery charges.

UPDATE: D.C. Republican party responds to Loza's arrest with the following statement:

"The arrest of Jim Graham's chief of st...

Norton: Security At Federal Buildings May Be Just A Nuisance

Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton says security at federal buildings may be nothing more than a nuisance for visitors.

Norton held a hearing on Capitol Hill to draw attention to D.C.’s security problems. Norton says all that I.D. checking and purse searching people have to endure every time th...

Virginia Governor Announces 300 New Jobs In Fairfax County

FAIRFAX, Va. (AP) Six companies are expanding in Fairfax County and are expected to create more than 300 new jobs over the next three years. Gov. Tim Kaine announced the expansions in the technology, distribution and health care sectors on Thursday.

Technology company ACS State and Local So...

Maryland Seniors Respond To Health Care Meetings

Seniors in Silver Spring, Maryland have health care reform on the brain after a pair of high-profile town hall meetings on how to revamp the system.

Leisure World retirement community hosted Congressman Chris Van Hollen last month. This week the guest was Vice President Joe Biden.

Reb...

Tech Firm In Baltimore Sues Facebook

A small tech company in Maryland is suing the social networking giant Facebook for patent infringement.

The company, WhoGlue Inc., is based in Baltimore where it makes and sells software for membership-driven associations and nonprofit organizations. WhoGlue holds a patent for a system it s...

Commentary: Why We Should Love Traffic Tickets

Nobody likes being on the receiving end of a traffic ticket. But Commentator Fred Fiske says we should find a way to be thankful for them.

The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the opinions of WAMU 88.5 or American University.

What do you think? Click here to join the convers...

Virginia Based Guard To Return From Iraq

About 130 soldiers from a Manassas-based Virginia Guard unit are returning to the state after serving in Iraq.

The 266th military police company has been in Iraq since December 2008 and is scheduled to return late this afternoon at the Richmond International Airport. Governor Tim Kaine is e...

Mikulski Says Latest Metro Safety Report Will Prod Congress To Act

Senator Barbara Mikulski says a new safety report will help prod Congress into passing a transportation spending bill that includes money to fix Metro's equipment problems.

The National Transportation Safety Board wants improved evacuation and rescue features on rail cars, data recorders on...

Metro's Embattled General Manager Retains Job

Metro's board of directors voted 5 to 1 to extend general manager John Catoe's contract another 3 years. D.C. City administrator Neil Albert was the only board member to vote against the extension.

The Washington Post reports Catoe's salary will remain the same, but he'll now receive a $27,...

Power Breakfast for September 24, 2009

The House Financial Services Committee meets this morning to discuss reducing risk and dealing with companies deemed too big to fail. Some on Capitol Hill wonder if newspapers are too important to fail.

Manuel Quinones reports...

"Art Beat" with Stephanie Kaye - Thursday, September 24, 2009

(Sept 24-Oct 11) OMBAMANOLOGUES Decades down the road, what will you recall about the election of President Barack Obama? That's the question posed by Obamanologues, on stage at the Mead Theatre Lab at Flashpoint in downtown D.C. through October 11th. This political theater production provides...

D.C. Teachers Protest Layoffs

Dozens of educators have gathered outside the D.C. Public Schools building downtown, protesting a decision to lay off some teachers and staff at the end of the month.

Kavitha Cardoza reports..

Meghan McCain Energizes Campus Republicans

A standing-room-only crowd is packed into a dining hall at American University to hear a speech by a 24-year-old named Meghan.

Meghan is clad in designer jeans and is sporting a tattoo of a star on her right foot. She looks remarkably similar to the hundreds of students she's addressing....

"Conversations"...Michael Cottman speaks With the President Of The CBCF

As part of our continuing series "Conversations," reporter Michael Cottman speaks with Dr. Elise Scott, president of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, about the CBCF's 39th Annual Legislative Conference this week in Washington, D.C.

D.C. Council Member's Chief Of Staff Arrested

Ted Loza, chief of staff to D.C. Council Member Jim Graham (D-Ward 1), is charged with accepting cash payments and other gifts from a person in the taxi cab industry.

Patrick Madden reports...

Monarch Sister Schools Builds Butterfly Gardens In D.C.

Each autumn, the monarch butterfly travels thousands of miles as it migrates from Canada to Mexico. It's a long trip, and the butterflies need plenty of milkweed to survive. But Christopher Puttock says milkweed supplies are growing scarce.

Puttock is a botanist with the Monarch Sister Scho...