‘Will on the Hill’ Jabs at CNN

If you’re looking to elicit laughs from an audience, make jokes about CNN’s blunder-filled coverage of the Boston Marathon bombings.

Or, at least that’s what participants in the annual “Will on the Hill” performance learned.

A bipartisan crowd of senators and representatives, as well as a few members of the Fourth Estate, performed the Shakespeare-inspired “Toil and Trouble” on Monday, which poked fun at a “National Necessary News Network” trying to fill airtime before a White House announcement, with no news to announce. Full story

Hipsters to Celebrate Derby Day on Capitol Hill

Derby days are upon us, and all of you Capitol Hill denizens won’t have to look far to take part in a derby-themed festivity.

In honor of Saturday’s Kentucky Derby, Brightest Young Things, our favorite hipster party planner, is hosting “Prancin’ – A Derby Day Party” at the Hill Center near the Eastern Market Metro. Full story

Bird Terrorizes Tourists, Capitol Police Officers

An officer stationed at the post confirmed that a crow has been terrorizing tourists and others from its tree across the street from the Veterans of Foreign Wars building.  

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‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Star Kate Walsh Lobbies Capitol Hill for Clean Energy

Actress Kate Walsh, known for her role as Dr. Addison Montgomery on ABC’s “Private Practice” and “Grey’s Anatomy,” made the rounds Thursday on Capitol Hill to lobby for offshore wind power with the ocean conservation group Oceana.

Walsh’s visit, which coincides with the third anniversary of the Gulf oil spill, brought her to the offices of Sen. Barbara Boxer of California and Reps. Raúl M. Grijalva of Arizona and Xavier Becerra and Mike Thompson of California, all Democrats. Full story

Ohio Democrats Seek Condolence Notes for Ex-Rep. Charlie Wilson’s Family

It’s been a little over a week since former Rep. Charlie Wilson, D-Ohio, died at the age of 70 of complications from a stroke, but Ohio Democrats are still mourning his loss.

The Ohio Democratic Party sent out an email on Monday asking its members to send their condolences to Wilson’s family and praising Wilson for being “a tireless advocate for the middle class.”

“He advocated passionately for the people of Ohio, securing funding for police departments, airport improvements and small-business incubators, among other projects,” Ohio Democratic Party Chairman Chris Redfern said in an email. “Charlie wasn’t afraid to stand up for what he believed in, and courageously voted for universal health care not just once but twice.”

If HOH were sending a condolence letter, we’d praise this jingle that helped Wilson win an astounding write-in primary battle in 2006 that launched his congressional career.

Those looking to write condolence notes (and get on the Ohio Democrats’ email list) can do so here.

Staffers Schooled on Veganism at CVC Lunch

About 200 Hill staffers were treated to a vegan lunch Monday afternoon by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine and the Capitol Hill Vegetarian Caucus at a luncheon designed to spread the mantra of a plant-based diet.

Staffers munched on vegan items such as kale chips, cucumber gazpacho and grape leaves stuffed with a nut mixture, provided by the Washington, D.C., restaurant Elizabeth’s Gone Raw, and washed it all down with cupcakes provided by two-time Food Network “Cupcake Wars” champions Sticky Fingers bakery.

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Vegetarian Caucus Hosting CVC Lunch

A little more than a month after organizing a push for more diverse vegetarian and vegan options in Capitol Hill cafeterias, the Vegetarian Caucus will host a luncheon April 22 to inform congressional staffers about the “benefits of a plant-based lifestyle.”

More than 200 Hill staffers have signed up for the event, according to the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, which is co-hosting the luncheon. The meal will feature a flavorful menu of kale chips, cucumber gazpacho, grape leaves with tzatziki sauce and reverse osmosis water.

Staff in attendance will hear from Elizabeth Kucinich, director of the PCRM and wife of former Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio. Both Kuciniches live vegan lifestyles, and pushed for better vegetarian and vegan options in Capitol Hill cafeterias during Kucinich’s time in Congress.

The Kuciniches follow a vegan lifestyle. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call File Photo)

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At Long Last, Spotify Returns to the House

The kinks blocking House members and staffers from accessing the popular music-streaming website Spotify have finally been ironed out, officially ending the two-month-long Spotify drought plaguing the House side of the Hill, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor’s office told HOH on Monday.

Those on the House side of the Capitol looking to listen to some tunes can access Spotify via the application’s Web client at https://play.spotify.com, Cantor’s Deputy Digital Director Connor Walsh said.

Access to Spotify was blocked on the House network earlier this year due to concerns that the website could pose cyber-security threats.

After working to address the security concerns with the House Chief Administrative Officer, the House announced last week that staff could once again use Spotify to stream music while at work.

But staffers reported that access was still spotty, with many staffers still receiving the dreaded “WEBSITE BLOCKED” message that they’d received during the two-month Spotify ban. Full story

Steve Cohen Just Wants to Have Fun

Let’s give Rep. Steve Cohen the benefit of the doubt, at the same time keeping straight all that is going into his explanation over his latest Twitter misadventure: Cyndi Lauper, his own daughter, Mavis Staples, the movie ‘Absence of Malice,’ two of his own colleagues, the White House, and, of course, the Sunlight Foundation.

At a somewhat perplexing news conference Friday afternoon, the Tennessee Democrat said that a tweet he fired off from his Twitter account Tuesday night to singer Cyndi Lauper, saying she was “hot” at a performance at the White House, wasn’t a mistake but rather a prank on the media.

Cohen gave a couple of reasons as to why he sent the tweet in question to Lauper: “CyndiLauper great night,couldn’t believe how hot u were.see you again next Tuesday.try a little tenderness”

First, he said he wanted to promote the White House program – which featured performances of Memphis music by Justin Timberlake, Queen Latifah, Mavis Staples and the Alabama Shakes, among others, and will be replayed on Tuesday on PBS.

Second, he said he was trying to turn “gotcha” journalism around on all of us journalists. Full story

McCotter Sues Former Staffers for Forged Ballot Signatures

Ex-Rep. Thaddeus McCotter, R-Mich., is taking two former staffers to court, suing them for the fraudulent nomination petitions that ultimately led to his resignation from Congress in July.

In the lawsuit filed in Michigan’s Wayne County Circuit Court on Thursday, McCotter alleges that the two aides deliberately submitted forged ballot petitions to foil his re-election efforts, according to The Associated Press.

The former fringe 2012 GOP presidential hopeful filed the suit against his former deputy district director, Don Yowchuang, 34, and former intern, Dillon Breen, 20. Full story

Cedric Richmond Shows Social Media Moxie

Rep. Cedric L. Richmond, the New Orleans Democrat known for smoking Republicans with his pitching skills during the annual CQ Roll Call Congressional Baseball Game, added another notch to his social media belt by joining Instagram last week.

Richmond told HOH that he decided to launch the account to give his constituents a peek into the life of a member of Congress.

“I thought it would be something unique to try and figure out,” Richmond added.
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Take Five With Rep. Hakeem Jeffries

It’s Tuesday. That means it’s time for another Take Five, HOH’s weekly chance to get to know a member of Congress a little better by asking five fun questions relatively unrelated to their legislative work. This week, freshman Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., talks about how Washington, D.C., has changed since he was a master’s candidate at Georgetown University and discloses his New York baseball team of choice.
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Cherry Blossom Festival Opens to Cool Temps

The Cherry Blossom Festival officially began Wednesday, marking the unofficial start of tourist season in Washington, D.C.

But festivalgoers were greeted not with blooming blossoms, but with an arctic chill that blew across the region.

Visitors who made plans for this weekend based on the initial peak-bloom dates of March 26 to 30 shouldn’t get their hopes up, as the cold weather in March has pushed the peak bloom dates back to April 3 to 6.
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Dragons, Warriors, Acrobats, Predators

The circus is coming to town!

No, not the media circus covering Capitol Hill, but the actual Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus!

On Tuesday night, the “pachyderm parade” – or a band of the circus’ elephants – stomped through Capitol Hill, starting at the Capitol Power Plant and passing by the Capitol complex en route to the Verizon Center.

The stunt was in preparation for the circus’s show “Dragons,” which opens Thursday and runs through Sunday at the Verizon Center.

The show honors the Chinese Year of the Dragon – which wrapped up at the beginning of February – and features martial arts, fire, tigers, acrobats and, of course, elephants.

Prior to Thursday’s opening night performance, the circus will host a VIP party from 6  p.m. to 7 p.m. for all ticket holders. The party features “Asian-inspired drinks and activities.”

“We will have a number of DRAGON-inspired elements at the opening night VIP receptions, including dragon facemasks for the kids, red lanterns, dragon garnishes and trinkets,” circus spokeswoman Becky Brand said.

Brand added that Washingtonians who would like a sneak peek of the circus show can head to the Renaissance Hotel Plaza in Chinatown on Friday night, where the Chinese Shoalin Warrior Troupe will perform some of the martial arts moves from the show.

The circus will play nine shows at the Verizon Center. Tickets can be purchased at ticketmaster.com or at the Verizon Center box office, and cost between $15 and $35.

A Crapo Fundraiser’s Interesting Optics

Not quite four months since Sen. Michael D. Crapo was arrested in Virginia and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, the Idaho Republican apparently feels right at home heading to a fundraiser at a private townhouse owned by a liquor conglomerate.

Crapo — who was pulled over on Dec. 23 in Alexandria, Va., and failed multiple sobriety tests — is hosting the event Thursday afternoon for his Freedom Fund PAC at the privately owned Diageo Townhouse at 310 Sixth St. SE.
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