Good morning. Sunny today with a high around 81 and—finally—a break from the humidity. A low near 58 overnight. How well do you know the District? Play our new geography game and test your local knowledge. You can find me on Bluesky, I’m @abeaujon.87 on Signal, and there’s a link to my ema il address below. This roundup is available as a morning email newsletter. Sign up here. I can’t stop listening to: Danny Elfman, “The Simpsons” theme. The Oingo Boingo frontman turned A-list Hollywood composer plays a career-spanning set at the Fillmore Silver Spring tonight. Take Washingtonian Today with you! I keep ridiculously long playlists on Apple Music and on Spotify of this year’s music recommendations. Here are 2025’s songs (Apple, Spotify), too. Here’s some administration news you might have blocked out: The war: Talks between Iran and other countries in the Gulf were postponed late Sunday. Violence in the region increased over the weekend as the Tehran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen attacked Saudi targets and took effective control of a key shipping choke point. (Reuters) President Trump returned to a familiar claim yesterday, saying the Iranians were “calling constantly,” begging him to make a deal. (AP) Oil prices rose over the weekend as Iran’s moves and growing regional conflicts mean that “Saudi Arabia, an energy kingpin and important U.S. military ally, has few safe routes remaining to export its oil.” (WSJ) The average price of a gallon of gas in the US rose to $4.31. (AAA) Widening problems: Hard-liners in Tehran successfully derailed a deal to end the war Trump launched in February, aiming to inflict economic pain on the US and its allies. (NYT) “Chinese entities” provided Tehran with satellite imagery it used to attack a US base in Jordan in July. (WSJ) AI yi yi: Calls to regulate AI development in the US increased over the weekend as Silicon Valley muckety-mucks debated slowing down research on the technology. (NYT) Former President Obama urged Democrats to develop a “very clear plan” about AI safety. (NBC News) Trump rejected calls to attenuate AI development, casting it as a battle between China and the US. (Washington Post) Administration perambulation: Trump surprised the United Kingdom by calling for Ireland to reunify during a visit to the Emerald Isle over the weekend. (WSJ) He promised to share his thoughts on Scottish independence at a later time. (Reuters) Trump also said he’d lift a tariff on Irish whiskey because “Everybody’s been bugging me.” (AP) The EPA will end limits on power plant emissions in a move that could forbid future administrations from reimposing them. (NYT) Congress is back in session today—the House for a week and the Senate for a planned three weeks. Here’s a look ahead at its pre-midterms docket. (Punchbowl News) A woman in Pennsylvania died from probable complications from measles. Reports of other measles deaths in Pennsylvania have sparked confrontations between Health Secretary RFK Jr. and the state’s governor, Josh Shapiro. (Washington Post) The CDC said the cyclospora outbreak has ended. Have some lettuce on your sandwich today to celebrate? (Hill) The Best Thing I Ate Last Week, by Ann Limpert: Photograph by Scott Suchman. Rum is an underrated breakfast ingredient. Not in the glass, but in things like glazed pastries and French toast (I even throw a little in my crêpe batter). At Astro Doughnuts, dark rum stars in a deliciously punchy little cake doughnut made with the help of Cane owner Jeanine Prime. Her inspired riff on Caribbean rum cake is packed with autumnal spices like clove and nutmeg, then rolled in toasty coconut. It’s available at Astro’s Metro Center and Shirlington doughnut shops on weekends through the end of the month, and collabs with Caruso’s Grocery and Purple Patch are next. Recently on Washingtonian dot com: • Rasika and Chai Pani alums Prady Rana and Bhakti More have opened N.H. 48 Indian Kitchen, a new, subcontinent-traversing, Indian restaurant in Palisades. Local news links: Let’s check in on Trump’s DC projects: ¶ The Kennedy Center says it faces “certain fiscal collapse” and is likely to close Tuesday unless it’s allowed to put Trump’s name on the building, the only way, its Trump-installed management says, that the President will raise money for the complex’s rehabilitation. (Washington Post) And the National Symphony Orchestra finished a contract that should carry the orchestra through the center’s planned closure. (Washington Classical Review) ¶ Atlantic Industrial Coatings, the firm Trump hired to refurbish the Reflecting Pool, attributed the project’s failures to its own mistakes, rather than a widespread campaign of vandalism, the explanation Trump favors. (NYT) ¶ The National Park Service hopes to reinforce a deteriorating sea wall that could threaten Trump’s plans for a revamped golf course in East Potomac Park. (Washington Post) ¶ Trump declared that the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History should immediately replace an outdoor statue that’s been in place since 1967 with a huge statue of George Washington that he favors. (Washington Post) • The US Park Police have “more than doubled the number of officers in the region and dramatically increased arrests.” What do a federal law enforcement agency’s ambitions to become the “premier law enforcement agency in D.C.” mean for locals? (City Cast) • Opening arguments in DC Council member Trayon White‘s bribery trial could happen this week. Here’s a good look at what’s ahead—including a surprise cameo from former Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell‘s overturned corruption conviction. (Washington Sun) • The Northwest DC home of Official Washington bigwig and original Call Your Mother investor Jeff Zients is about to hit the market for almost $19 million. (Axios D.C.) • The overwhelming sentiment on the subreddits I frequent is that the Commanders’ 24-22 loss to Philadelphia yesterday could have been worse. Martenzie Johnson breaks down the game. (Washington Sun)The post Kennedy Center Claims It Needs Trump’s Name on the Building to Survive, Reflecting Pool Contractor Says It—Not Vandals—Was Responsible for Fiasco, and the Commanders’ Loss Could Have Been Worse first appeared on Washingtonian. ...read more read less