UPDATE: Hillary Clinton in Northern Virginia tomorrow

Hillary Clinton is expected to make a campaign stop in Northern Virginia tomorrow (location still to be announced) ahead of next Tuesday's primary elections here.

Because of high concentrations of African American and well-educated voters, many political strategists say Obama (D-Ill.) could have an early advantage in all three states, but Clinton strategists say the New York Democrat will campaign hard across the region. Clinton strategists are especially optimistic about their chances in Virginia, where her campaign dispatched several operatives experienced in state elections.

"We believe we can do very well" in Virginia, Clinton spokesman Mo Elleithee said.

Clinton is planning to hold a rally tomorrow in Northern Virginia, though a location has not been determined. Yesterday, the Clinton campaign unveiled a list of 100 Democratic advocates from across Virginia who will serve on her state campaign steering committee.

Obama was endorsed by nearly half the Democrats in the Virginia Senate, including one who had previously backed Clinton and several who had supported former senator John Edwards (D-N.C.), who ended his campaign last week.

There are 238 delegates to be won between Virginia, Maryland and Washington, DC.

VIDEO: Caroline and Ted Kennedy endorse Barack Obama

Senator Ted Kennedy officially endorsed Barack Obama at a rally this morning at American University here in Washington, DC (videos below). Lowell has some great pictures from the rally posted over at Raising Kaine as well.

Caroline Kennedy endorses Barack Obama:

Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy endorses Barack Obama:

And finally, Obama accepts the nomination:

Federal Transit Administration to block Metrorail extension?

Well this certainly is news I'm having a hard time forming an opinion on. Being a resident of Arlington county, I, along with virtually everyone else familiar with the project favor the underground option as opposed to the above ground rail. However, the fact that the FTA is threatening to reject it because they are "reluctant to promote large scale transit projects" kind of makes me sick.

Officials on Capitol Hill, in Richmond and at the airports authority's headquarters have speculated in recent days about what the problem might be. Some say the FTA has long been skeptical of expensive rail projects; in recent years, it has more often championed bus rapid transit projects.

Others point to a long-standing desire in the Transportation Department to move away from public investments in infrastructure. Peters, the transportation secretary, for example, refused to endorse a report published Tuesday by a bipartisan national commission on the future of the nation's transportation system. She instead issued a dissent decrying wasteful spending and the federal government's large share of the investment. She said she favored private investment and more tolling to control congestion.

I would hardly call a "bus" rapid transit, first of all. Second of all, isn't it great how we're spending trillions in Iraq to "build" (destroy) their infrastructure but projects like this within our own country remain in limbo decades after they are needed.

Goodbye Richmond: Two weeks

Two weeks from today I'll be moving into my new apartment in Arlington (Rosslyn, to be exact) about a five minute walk to both the Rosslyn, and Courthouse metro stations. I've lived in Richmond my entire life, with the exception of one year when I lived in Nags Head, and to be honest I hate it here, and I won't be sad to leave it behind. For the past two years I've spent almost as much time in the imperial District as I have in Richmond, and I feel like I know the DC metro area a lot better than I do Richmond.

I also got a job at Human Rights Campaign in downtown DC, and will be in school full time (hopefully to be finished with both of my degrees in about a year to a year and a half)!!

Woman who plowed into DC street fair worked for Marion Barry

Hey look! Another crack cocaine story involving Marion Barry!!

Via WaPo online:

The woman charged with driving through a crowded Southeast Washington festival this weekend -- injuring dozens -- had been "smoking crack all day long," Police Chief Cathy L. Lanier said yesterday, citing witnesses and the woman's statement to police.

The driver, whom police identified as 30-year-old Tonya Bell of Oxon Hill, is charged with aggravated assault while armed. She has felony and misdemeanor arrests dating to at least 1995 and has served time in prison for charges involving cocaine. Bell suffered a sprained ankle Saturday night in an episode Mayor Adrian M. Fenty described as "one of the worst serious traffic accidents" in D.C. history.

At least 40 people, including seven children, were hurt when Bell drove her station wagon through the crowd. In the midst of the mayhem, parents pushed their children aside and tossed empty strollers in her path, hoping to block her. Police on bicycles and motorbikes didn't dare use their weapons with so many people at risk. Instead, they threw two motorized scooters beneath Bell's vehicle, bringing it to a stop.

The article goes on to say:

D.C. Council member Marion Barry said his chief of staff is trying to determine whether Bell works as a temporary employee for Barry’s council office. Barry…said someone named Tonya Bell has worked in the office for several weeks. “Whether it is the same person or not, I am trying to check it out,” Barry said last night.

Faux News has confirmed that she is indeed, an employee at Marion Barry's office. I'll have a link as soon as I can find one.

UPDATE: This is hilarious, except for the fact that she hurt 40 people:

"I dragged the young lady out of the car. When I dragged her out of the car people were trying to hurt her. They were beating her, they were stomping her in the head, but she didn't feel a thing. She reached to get her pipe, a crack pipe and lit it," the witness told News4.

UPDATE #2: Linkage, finally!

The woman who plowed through a crowd of people with her car Saturday night will no longer be working as a receptionist in the office of Washington, D.C., Councilman Marion Barry.

Barry, the former mayor, terminated a contract with the company who provided Tonya Bell as a temporary employee for his office.

"Needless to say we are greatly saddened by the incident not only because of the tremendous pain and suffering of the victims, but also because our office relied on the integrity of your screening procedures in agreeing to the placement," Barry wrote in a letter sent to NAI Personnel, the employment agency.

"The behavior of your employee, although outside of work, indicates that you may not have properly investigated her background prior to placing her in our office," the letter reads.

Metro to provide free sideshow entertainment

We all know that the "highlight of the day" for any good citizen of the imperial District is when he or she gets the honor of knocking anyone standing on the right left side of the Metro escalator out of the way, but now, Metro also wants you to enjoy some live entertainment!

Metro officials will be making some musical moves later Thursday. The transit agency is launching a pilot program providing live entertainment at some Metrorail station entrances over the summer and during the winter holiday season.

Auditions are set for Thursday evening and Saturday at Metro's downtown headquarters.

MetroPerforms is a joint effort by Metro and the D.C. Arts Commission to find acts to perform at subway stations in the District. Similar auditions are planned to find acts to feature in Prince George's and Montgomery counties.

Right, let's turn the whole damn thing into a circus, like people on the metro need any more reason to smell like vomit and garbage.