Meet the New Boss
• April 13, 2015

Ever since Muriel Bowser – not unexpectedly – won the November general election, becoming the District of Columbia’s second female mayor and the second-youngest of either sex, she has been enjoying an extended honeymoon with the city’s residents and, by and large, the media.

Honeymoons are common for newly elected officials, though their duration tends to be unpredictable.

In a way, the whole process imitates how people end up married. There is that first, exciting meeting and flush of curiosity among the public, the media and the new candidate, followed by an odd kind of courtship played out in town forums and debates (the gotcha-eager media watching every step). Then there’s commitment, as the winning candidate makes promises that she or he may or may not keep. An engagement party – in the form of inaugural bashes, ceremonies and parades – makes things official. And they do solemnly swear.

But what happens next is never quite what anybody – candidate, constituents or the press – thinks it is going to be. Right from the start, life comes barreling down, in some cases almost on the morning after the morning after (Mayor Vincent Gray, anyone?).

“Expect the unexpected,” said the 42-year-old Bowser of her job. On March 20, a busy day at the mayor’s office, she had just settled down for an interview with The Georgetowner. “You have to be ready for surprises.”

It was interesting to watch the process as – with an early announcement, back in spring 2013 – Bowser moved from being a Ward 4 council member to a citywide candidate.

Over that period of time, we’ve had the opportunity to observe her on the campaign trail, where she grew steadily in confidence against a seasoned group of campaigners, including the scandal-plagued incumbent mayor Vincent Gray. She won the Democratic primary going away.

Her general election campaign against Independents David Catania and Carol Schwartz was different in tone and in practice. She became a candidate who was very much in control of her campaign, and the campaign in general. We talked to her then at a crowded, millennial-oriented coffeehouse in Petworth, a scene representative of the changes the city was experiencing. If anything, she was more confident than ever, dismissing questions about the possibility of a tight election.

“To me,” Bowser said then, even after limiting the playing field to four debates, “the biggest thing was being able to meet and talk with the people across the diverse neighborhoods of this city. I know who I am and where I come from, but here, in this process, I saw and engaged the whole city. It was revealing to me how much all of the people in this city have in common, and, at the same time, the diversity of hopes, needs, dreams – the resources of the same people.”

We saw Bowser build her transition team – which included former mayors Marion Barry, Sharon Pratt, Anthony Williams and Adrian Fenty – and later become one of the chief mourners for Barry, who passed away unexpectedly and to much citywide sorrow in November.

We watched her being sworn in along with a number of new members of the District Council (Bowser called them NKOTBs, New Kids on the Block), as well as the District’s first elected attorney general, Karl Racine, who ruled that the mayor’s $20-million initiative to empower young boys and men of color passed constitutional muster.

We sat down with her for an interview last month, then watched her deliver a rousing hope-filled, project-filled, initiative-filled and slogan-filled State of the District Address March 31 at the historic Lincoln Theatre, right next to a D.C. icon, Ben’s Chili Bowl, on the U Street Corridor. Outside, demonstrators rallied, calling for more affordable housing, more help for the homeless and the protection of neighborhoods.

There are several reasons for the honeymoon that, despite the demonstrators, Bowser is experiencing. One of them is plainly the growth of her public persona. From being a relatively reserved council candidate, mentored and picked by Fenty, she has grown to be – over the course of the extended campaigns, her victory and her first three months in office – almost omnipresent in the public eye and the media. She appears to relish that part of the job, and doesn’t intend to change it.

For instance, she moved to more approachable digs on the third floor of the Wilson Building, with a view – from airy, brightly lit and modern rooms – of Pennsylvania Avenue, the Willard Hotel, the National Theatre and buses rolling along the boulevard. On a table in her office sit Barack Obama’s “Audacity of Hope” and Marion Barry’s autobiography, “Mayor For Life.”

“It’s a conscious decision to be closer to everything,” Bowser said. “Sometimes, the office can isolate you from staff – and real people.”

To all appearances, she was ready and eager to take on the work of being mayor. “I’m ready to go to work,” she said at her inauguration. “But the reality is that it’s a sobering, humbling experience to deal with the daily tasks, the duties, the things that surprise.” She reiterated: “Expect the unexpected.”

In the first month of her tour of duty, there were not one, but several, winter storms that closed schools and made for an endless series of decisions about deployment, preparedness and resources. Then there was the fatal fire at the L’Enfant Plaza Metro station, putting both Metro and the D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department under scrutiny. Bowser was emphatic, saying that the D.C. departments had acted professionally and appropriately.

Later, she hired Gregory Dean, retired chief of the Seattle Fire Department, as the District’s new fire chief. During an interview with The Georgetowner, Bowser said that the problems at the fire department – especially relating to its EMS component – were “sobering.”

During her first (almost) hundred days in office, Bowser seems to have been everywhere. Searching for budget ideas, she held four community forums throughout the city. She traveled to Texas, to New York City – and got a favorable bond-rating increase – and to San Francisco for a fruitless push to host the Olympics. And she made sure that residents knew what she was up to, with newsletters, emails and a hefty social-media presence.

“We are going to be the most transparent administration that you can possibly be,” Bowser said.

In the new position, her life has changed considerably. What does she miss? “Driving myself where I want to go, when I want to go,” she said. “Did you ever want some Cherry Garcia ice cream and just go get it? I used to like just going around the city, driving around, meeting people, checking things out. That can’t be done anymore, and I understand that.” To relax from the stressors of her new job, she has begun to allow herself some time off, such as a weekly massage at the Four Seasons.

She readily acknowledged being “a hometown girl,” adding, “I was raised in Ward 4 in a large family. Our parents made sure we had what was needed. We did not go hungry. We went to good schools, and we got our education.” Her higher education reflects her varied interests: a bachelor of arts in history from Chatham College, a master’s degree in public policy from American University.

In many ways, Bowser is all about the future, even while acknowledging the contributions of people like Barry and earlier mayors and leaders.

“The city’s changing enormously,” she said. “We have to make sure that we don’t lose people because they can no longer afford to live here. But, you know, when we’re talking about ‘One City,’ we’re talking about getting the neighborhoods to pull together. It’s not about divisions in race, or money, even. It’s about pulling together.”

Now, the mayoral city slogan is: “We are Washington, D.C.”

“The city council is no longer the city council of the past,” she said. “We have a number of new people on the council who are young, smart, able and imaginative. Frankly, their talents should be used to head committees that are now part of the Committee of the Whole.” A veteran of the council herself, Bowser said that she sees this arrangement as a better division of work: “I hope they revisit the organization of the council.”

Like many politicians, she seems to have a preference for talking in slogans, peppered with the acronyms of Twitter and Facebook.

In her State of the District Address, titled “Creating Pathways to the Middle Class,” the middle-class thematic came up a number of times, none more moving and pragmatic than when Bowser described the world in which she grew up, raised by middle-class parents.

“My parents bought their first home in 1960, when the average price of a home was $15,000. Today, it’s $500,000,” she said. “We have to make sure that if we’re going to be a city where families can stay and grow, we must do more to create opportunities for them. It always means creating pathways to the middle class.”

She used the phrase “fresh start” more than once – although not in terms of the streetcar project to which she committed $350 million more so that it would reach Georgetown, among other places. She rattled off a series of projects: building new housing, providing affordable housing, changing the landscape of Anacostia, preserving and expanding the Mayor Marion S. Barry Summer Youth Employment Program, new education and workforce-training efforts, programs to get and keep residents by putting them to work and letting them succeed.

“Because, we know, when they succeed, we all succeed,” she said several times, using another oratorical trope in her growing rhetorical toolbox.

Most of her measures were greeted with loud applause, the 50 or so protesters outside the theater notwithstanding.

“We are a growing city, a world-class city,” Bowser said. “But we face a large $250-million deficit, which requires tough decisions. But I will balance that budget, with the help of the residents of this city, and I’ll deliver it tomorrow [April 2] to the city council for its approval.”

Which she did. In order to balance the budget, the tough decisions included increasing sales taxes and cutting funds for the University of the District of Columbia and Medicare payments.

No doubt there will be arguments over these and other choices. But for now, Mayor Muriel Bowser is still on a kind of honeymoon. Even the realities of the $12.9-billion 2016 budget won’t change that – yet.

Mayor Muriel Bowser: Get to Know Her

Muriel Elizabeth Bowser, Mayor of the District of Columbia, was born Aug. 2, 1972, in Washington, D.C. She traces her Washington roots through five generations. Her middle name – Elizabeth – is from her maternal great-grandmother, Elizabeth Brown.

Bowser grew up in North Michigan Park, the youngest of five children. Her father, Joe, an advisory neighborhood commissioner, has been a community activist since the mayor was a little girl. “His legacy is part of her,” Bob King, the city’s longest-serving advisory neighborhood commissioner and a family friend, told the Washington Post.

When she was born, her closest sibling in age was Mark, 10 years old. Twins Martin and Marvin were about to begin high school and the eldest daughter, Mercia, was getting ready for college. Her mother, Joan, recalled that Muriel grew up almost as an only child.

She graduated in 1990 from Elizabeth Seton High School, an all-girls Catholic high school in Bladensburg, Maryland. She earned a bachelor of arts degree in history from Chatham College in Pittsburgh and a master’s degree in public policy from American University. Before entering politics, she worked for State Farm Insurance.

She began her political career in 2004 when she ran for the local ANC and represented the neighborhood of Riggs Park, where she bought a house several years earlier. In 2006, she was re-elected.

When Adrian Fenty became mayor in 2007, Bowser was the campaign coordinator for Ward 4, which Fenty represented in the District Council. In a special election to fill his seat, she won with 40 percent of the vote. In 2008 and 2012, Bowser was re-elected, winning with 97 percent of the vote both times.

Bowser was chairwoman of the Council’s Committee on Economic Development, which helped to create affordable housing, passed legislation to build a new soccer stadium and secured a portion of the Walter Reed campus for D.C. As chairwoman of the Committee on Government Operations, she worked to pass comprehensive ethics reform, improve the efficiency and safety of the Metro system and increase transparency in government contracting.

On March 23, 2013, Bowser announced that she would run for mayor in the 2014 election. She won the Democratic primary on April 1, 2014, with 43 percent (42,045 votes) of the vote versus incumbent Mayor Vincent Gray’s 33 percent (31,613 votes).
In the general election, Bowser won with 80,824 votes. She took office Jan. 2 as D.C.’s seventh elected mayor. [gallery ids="102038,134728" nav="thumbs"]

‘Mad Men’ Artifacts Donated to Smithsonian (photos)
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The popular television series “Mad Men” is completing its final season on AMC, but the artifacts will live on in the collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. In a special ceremony on March 27, the museum accepted a donation of more than 50 artifacts from “Mad Men,” including costumes, props, and a script, as well as some of series creator and producer Matthew Weiner’s personal notes from the dramatic series. Period costumes from the 1960s included Don Draper’s charcoal gray suit and Cordova fedora and Betty Draper’s yellow house dress and apron. Also at the donation ceremony in addition to Matthew Weiner were actors Jack Hamm (Don Draper), Christina Hendricks (Joan Harris), John Slattery (Roger Sterling) and AMC President Charlie Collier. The “Mad Men” artifacts join those of other popular TV series in the Smithsonian’s collection, including “MASH,” “All in the Family” and “Seinfeld.”

The museum will open its first-floor innovations wing July 1. The Smithsonian National Museum of American History is located on the National Mall at 14th Street and Constitution Ave. N.W. and is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5:30 a.m. Admission is free.

View our photos from the donation ceremony by clicking on the photo icons below. [gallery ids="102032,134844,134846,134848,134850,134852,134854,134856,134860,134842,134840,134824,134826,134828,134822,134830,134832,134837,134861,134858" nav="thumbs"]

In the Shadow of Abraham Lincoln
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No single group of Americans is as revered in American hearts and minds – minds, especially – as the Founding Fathers, that group of giants from South and North who brought about a revolution.

No single man is more revered in American hearts and minds – hearts, especially, but also imaginations and passions – than Abraham Lincoln, the man from the Midwest, self-taught in almost everything he knew.

This city may bear Washington’s name, but it is not Washington’s city. This is Lincoln’s city.

Emancipation was born and given voice here by Father Abraham. Everyone comes to see Washington’s monument – that challenge to the sky itself, as straight as a soldier’s back on parade – but it’s rare to see weeping in its presence or a sudden, thoughtful stillness.

Everyone is drawn to that stone siren-song of a Lincoln Memorial on the Mall. They gather to sing, to bring on the Easter sun, to commemorate, commiserate and commune before Daniel Chester French’s stunning statue, that seems capable of tears and laughter, of aging and of humbled body and soul.

Everyone comes and came to the man in the big chair, even Richard Nixon. Lincoln finished the unfinished business – unfathomably furious and ferocious – that the Founding Fathers, large as they were, would not wrestle with.

Lincoln led the country at its deepest dark hour, he danced with the bear of what slavery had wrought: an all-consuming war, whose most notable and last victim he became.

This is Lincoln’s city. We are coming up on the 150th anniversary of his assassination by a man Lincoln had seen perform Shakespeare at the National Theatre. Ford’s Theatre – where he was felled by a still-resounding shot from that actor’s derringer – remains a theater, but it is at the same time and at all times a shrine. This is the place and the city where he died, early the next morning, in a boarding house across 10th Street.

This is Lincoln’s city. Out in Petworth, at the site of the Soldiers’ Home, is Lincoln’s Cottage, where he spent time away from the fetid heat, arriving on an a gray horse, at times in the company of his much spoiled and loved son Tad. For a few years, his son Willie was buried in Georgetown at Oak Hill Cemetery.

This is Lincoln’s city. Our great national free-verse poet Walt Whitman, who nursed wounded soldiers pouring in from battles and lived near the cottage, saw him daily. Whitman said, he “looks. . .as the commonest man. … I see very plainly Abraham Lincoln’s dark brown face, with the deep-cut lines, the eyes, always to me with a deep latent sadness in the expression.”

The “commonest of men” was the noblest American of them all. This is his city, our captain, the emancipator, our better angel.

Commemorating Lincoln’s Assassination
A list of events and exhibits to experience history and to experience the nation’s capital, as we commemorate the loss of one of our greatest leaders, Lincoln.

A list of events and exhibits to experience history and to experience the nation’s capital, as we commemorate the loss of one of our greatest leaders, Lincoln.

April 9
Cottage Conversation with Don Doyle and Sidney Blumenthal
Historian Don Doyle discusses his book, “The Cause of All Nations: An International History of the American Civil War,” with journalist Sidney Blumenthal, former aide to Bill Clinton. Tickets are $10 for the lecture and $10 for the reception. For details, visit lincolncottage.org/cc-doyle-2015/. President Lincoln’s Cottage, Upshur Street at Rock Creek Church Rd. NW.

April 14-15
The Lincoln Tribute
This continuous event will mark the 150th anniversary of Lincoln’s assassination. Ford’s Theatre will be open overnight, presenting Ranger talks, the one-act play “One Destiny” and panel discussions about the life, assassination and legacy of our 16th president. On the street outside, all day and all night, living historians will provide first-person accounts about the end of the Civil War, the experience of being inside the theater at the moment of the assassination, medical reports from the Petersen House and the impact of Lincoln’s life and death. The morning of April 15, Ford’s will mark Abraham Lincoln’s death at 7:22 a.m. with a wreath-laying ceremony. Church bells will toll across the city, as in 1865. Tickets are required for entry to the Ford’s Theatre campus. 10th Street NE between E and F Streets. Call 202-347-4833.

April 14-15
Ford’s Theatre Behind-the-Scenes Tour
Author and Ford’s Theatre Society board member Brian Anderson leads a behind-the-scenes tour of Ford’s Theatre based on his book, “Images of America: Ford’s Theatre.” 514 10th St. NW. Call 202-347-4833.

April 15
Midnight Tour with James Swanson
For the history buffs and night owls, James Swanson, author of “Manhunt,” leads a midnight tour of Ford’s Theatre. 514 10th St. NW. Call 202-347-4833.

April 17
Fortune’s Fool: Life of John Wilkes Booth
In Fortune’s Fool, historian Terry Alford provides a comprehensive look at the life of the figure whose life has been overshadowed by his final, infamous act. A book signing will follow the program, which begins at noon. National Archives. 700 Pennsylvania Ave N.W.

April 18-19
On the Trail of the Assassin
This event, featuring historical demonstrations, Civil War reenactments, walking tours, performances and more, will run Saturday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., at the Dr. Samuel Mudd House Museum. Event admission is $5 per car. House tour admission is $8 for adults and $2 for ages 6-16. 3725 Dr. Mudd Rd., Waldorf, Maryland. Call 800-766-3386.

Through May 25
Silent Witnesses: Artifacts of the Lincoln Assassination
This exhibition at the Ford’s Theatre Center for Education and Leadership displays a collection of artifacts that were in Ford’s Theatre or carried by Lincoln on the night of his assassination, including the contents of Lincoln’s pockets, his top hat and the gun used. 514 10th St. NW. Call 202-347-4833.

Through May 31
Assassinations in the Capital Tour
This 90-minute tour covers two miles, starting at the Crime Museum and ending at Lafayette Square with a stop by Ford’s Theatre. Participants will learn about assassinations, attempted assassinations and other crime history in the nation’s capital. 575 7th St. NW.

Through Jan. 10
‘President Lincoln Is Dead’: The New York Herald Reports
For the first time since 1865, this Newseum exhibition brings together all seven New York Herald special editions from April 15 of that year, beginning with the 2 a.m. edition, containing the earliest Associated Press report that Lincoln had been shot. 555 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. Call 202-292-6100. [gallery ids="102042,134724" nav="thumbs"]

Sidewalks to Expand for Final Cherry Blossom Weekend
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This weekend, the Georgetown Business Improvement District will widen sidewalks — between 29th and 31st Streets — on M Street by a whopping eight feet to accommodate increased foot traffic caused by tourism around the National Cherry Blossom Festival and parade. In addition, the Circulator bus will offer free northbound trips up Wisconsin Avenue NW from 30th and K streets, thanks to BID. Lastly, area drivers can receive discounted parking in Georgetown lots Saturday and Sunday if they buy online.

The sidewalk widening will be the first of its sort this year, though BID has widened walkways in Georgetown on three other occasions, the latest of which occurred when Georgetown University and George Washington University had overlapping parents’ weekends last fall. The business organization plans to extend sidewalks for coinciding Georgetown and GW graduations in May and for the Georgetown French Market later this month.

The widening is a key part of the Georgetown 2028 15-year action plan, which aims improve the business district by modernizing aspects of the historic neighborhood and upgrading how Washingtonians access it.

Bowser Promises Streetcars ‘All the Way to Georgetown’
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Mayor Bowser gave her State of the District Address March 31. She voiced a commitment to improved education in the District, from early childhood education to adult education opportunities and job-training programs. Bowser’s address surprised many when she promised that the much-maligned Streetcar will soon run on H Street and Benning Road. But surprise turned to mild shock when she added the project would eventually span from Georgetown to east of the Anacostia River.

“We all know that the streetcar has been long on promises but short on results,” Bowser said. “That changes now. I promise you that we will get the Street Car along H Street and Benning Road line up and running. Then, we will extend the line to downtown Ward 7 so that Councilmember Alexander’s constituents along Benning Road can ride to Union Station and eventually all the way to Georgetown.”

T H E Artist Agency Celebrates 30 Years in Georgetown
• April 9, 2015

Georgetown’s T H E Artist Agency – a group of models and stylists – celebrated its 30th birthday April 1. Well known around the city and beyond, the agency has been used by many in the media, including this newspaper. The models, hairstylists and make-up artists, as well as the wardrobe and set stylists, have helped make several Georgetowner fashion specials more than memorable.

Headed by Lynda Erkiletian, president, and Elizabeth McDavitt-Centenari, director and vice president, the agency offered the following anniversary comments: “On our walk down memory lane, we revisit our humble beginnings in 1985. Propelled by limitless vision, hard work and determination, T H E was born in a 300-square-foot office on P Street, using one phone with call-waiting (and no computers) to book five stylists for a handful of loyal clients. Still in Georgetown 30 years later, we have made our home in an historic building on Potomac Street where we are honored to book the top one percent of talent for an elite clientele on an eco-friendly, paper-free booking system. Inspired by our passion for the industry and the satisfaction of loving what we do, we remain true to our roots while so much continues to change for the better.”

Check out T H E’s new website – THEArtistAgency.com – to peruse, as it noted, its “fresh look, user-friendly interface and the stunning portfolios of our models and stylists.”

M29 Lifestyle at Four Seasons Marks 5th Anniversary
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M29 Lifestyle at Four Seasons Hotel Washington, D.C., celebrates five years as one of Georgetown’s shopping destinations for luxurious hidden gems. “As style trends change with each season,” the store says, it “has continued to offer its clients a diverse and unique selection of exquisite clothing, accessories, home décor and gifts featuring creations from more than 20 designers exclusive to the store.”

The store will launch a new exclusive line April 16: Claire Florence for M29 Lifestyle. Pieces include collector’s edition totes, silk and ostrich feather scarves, spring cashmere tees and white crochet dresses, all ranging in price from $170 to $525.

“We are excited to launch an in-house line in collaboration with Claire Florence,” said the store’s retail director, Ron Edwards. “Florence’s designs are fresh, feminine and posh with details and trim that suit our luxury customers.”

Georgetown-based designer Claire Florence has worked directly with Edwards to create custom designs. Florence’s career started in New York, where she consulted for firms like Calvin Klein, Tom Ford and Cotton Incorporated. In 2000, she opened a New York City design studio that was featured in Vogue, Elle, Allure and Marie Claire. Florence’s sculptural pieces, made out of cashmere and detailed with fox and mink fur, have been worn by celebrities including Annick Goutal, Julia Roberts, Gwyneth Paltrow and Minnie Driver.

During the anniversary event, M29 Lifestyle will partner with Deborah Sigmund, a longtime friend of the store, donating 10 percent of the proceeds to Innocents at Risk, which is celebrating 10 years of fighting child sex-trafficking around the world.

Shadowstone Lighting Opens in D.C.
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One of the largest companies for media, film and entertainment lighting on the East Coast, Shadowstone opened at 953 V St. NE March 27 with a grand opening reception. On hand were company founder Frank Marsico, At-large Council member Vincent Orange and Angie Gates, director of the D.C. Office of Motion Picture and Television Development. The Shadowstone facility houses its showroom and rental department, as well as a brand-new light lab that will be used for product testing, demonstrations and workshops. The New Jersey-based Shadowstone has operated in the District for a number of years. Orange has worked to bring more film-production activity and jobs to the nation’s capital.

Get Rid of Greenwashing
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This Earth Day, let’s get rid of greenwashing. We’re fed up with companies pretending their products are green to dupe paying customers. Examples abound for all types of greenwashed products in the U.S., from shampoos and detergents, to meats and vegetables, to electronics and clothes, to cars and oil products, and even to plastics (water bottles and trash bags!) and paper products(!).

American consumers are all too eager to buy products with a green sheen, and companies are happy to serve the market with products that deceive with “green” or “natural” labels or packaging design. Consumers are being “greenmailed,” if you will, into buying products that claim to be more environmentally friendly than competitors. Well, they aren’t.

“Natural” and “all natural” mean nothing. Plastics aren’t green. Paper products, unless made primarily with recycled material, are not green. (For example, the super soft toilet paper increasingly found in grocery stores is so soft because it is made from ancient trees that are hundreds of years old.) Shampoos, conditioners, lotions and makeup made with petroleum or coal products are not “natural.” Laundry and dish detergents that contain countless toxic chemicals cannot be “green.” There’s not such thing as a “green” car. Even Priuses and electric cars run on fossil fuel and are manufactured with precious metals often ripped from the earth. Home appliances that save energy are better for the environment than clunker predecessors, but they still use substantial amounts of energy, usually made by burning fossil fuels. The list goes on and on.

As consumers, we expect more from these companies than the way they shamelessly hawk their environmentally degrading products. Companies, please drop the pretenses and be honest about your products’ impact on the environment. Show us a little transparency for the customers who spend millions on your products.

We know companies are hesitant to do this on their own because of American capitalism’s twisted incentives. So, let’s urge them on. Large companies are increasingly responsive through Twitter and other social media outlets. So, let’s call them out and tell them that their “all-natural” dish soaps and pesticides are ruining our waterways, that their paper products are crushing our most pristine forests, that their plastic is poisoning our sea life and that their appliances are burning up our atmosphere. It’s time to kill greenwashing.

GWU vs. Georgetown in Basketball?
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Those who have ever played one-on-one in their schoolyard or sunk a jump shot in a pick-up game or just launched an imaginary three-pointer to win at the buzzer – we love this time of year. March Madness, one giant American event that never lets you down. Congratulations to the NCAA men’s basketball national champions Duke University. One exciting game this year reminded me of a local rivalry that should happen and hasn’t in many, many years. Wichita State has wanted to play in-state rival Kansas for decades. When Wichita State coach Gregg Marshall ran into University of Kansas coach Bill Self last year, Marshall suggested they play. Self just laughed and walked away.

The Shockers had the last laugh. They beat the Jayhawks in the NCAA tournament this year.

Which brings me to the men’s basketball programs of Georgetown University and George Washington University. Georgetown was the national champion way back in 1984, and, in the immortal words of the late Marion Barry, they have never “gotten over it.”

Georgetown refuses to play its neighbor in nearby Foggy Bottom, George Washington. To properly understand why this has not occurred, I called basketball expert and columnist John Feinstein.

Feinstein has written about Georgetown arrogance and elitism for years. He told me that “Georgetown doesn’t think they have anything to gain.” The decision was not made by the present coach, John Thompson III, but by his father. The son takes the “cues from the father,” Feinstein said. And he went on to say that no one will “dare criticize Big John.”

Well, I will.

There’s more to this story. For 20 years, Pete Teeley has organized a tournament every Christmastime at the Verizon Center. Today, it is known as the BB&T Classic, a glorious event that has raised more than $9 million over the years for the Children’s Charity Foundation. It wasn’t until this past year that Georgetown University deigned to participate – with the explicit stipulation that it not play GW. (For 19 years, Georgetown did not participate at all.)

Feinstein was one of the original organizers. He went to Georgetown and thought they would surely play. As he recalled thinking, “It was for charity.” But, he said, “I was wrong.” Quite simply, Georgetown won’t play GW because the team might lose.

You see, doing something for the city is not what moves them. They don’t identify with D.C. They just don’t give a damn. And they get away with it.

I tried to contact Georgetown University President John DeGioia on this subject. He never called back.
Now, I must confess that I am a GW alumnus. More important, I am a resident of this city. A hometown rivalry – GW vs. Georgetown – would be great for this place. But Georgetown won’t suit up.

Political analyst Mark Plotkin is a contributor to the BBC on American politics and a contributor to TheHill.com.