Washington Stories: This town needs a dirt-dishing, muck-raking, scandal-r

[emad]

Washington Stories: This town needs a dirt-dishing, muck-raking, scandal-rich rag
By Rupert Cornwell
15 May 2005
THE INDEPENDENT

Now that we have our own major league baseball team, dare one hope that this city's other most glaring need will finally be met - for an old-fashioned gossip rag to cut the local surfeit of overlarge egos down to size?

Washington DC has many virtues, but an ability to laugh at itself is not among them. True, "Desperate Housewife" Laura Bush did her carefully rehearsed little number the other day, poking fun at Dubya at the annual White House correspondents dinner, and the fawning hacks duly rolled in the aisles.

The sad truth is, however, that the capital of the free world has rarely been as buttoned-up as now. The current administration, relentlessly on-message and ruthless in its punishment of anyone who lets slip even the tiniest unauthorised titbit, is part of the problem. But only a part. Cabinet secretaries, senators and congressmen and sundry other movers and shakers - everyone takes themselves so-o-o seriously.

The great days of Washington hostesses and Washington dinner parties were when JFK was President. For the past 40 years it's been downhill all the way. One small oasis is Wonkette, a Capitol-Hill based blog that broke the story of the Senate intern-turned-escort known as "Washingtonienne." But oh for an old-fashioned British red-top.

http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/story.jsp?story=638517

[MichiganVote]

1. The whole town is jaded, and full of sexual perverts and drunks

One of the sickest places on earth.

[dcfirefighter]

2. Hey, I live here

And I resent the implication that i'm jaded, perverted, and a drunk.

Oh, wait. No I don't.

[MichiganVote]

3. You're the one true King Arthur in the bunch