And the other shoe dropped...

Capitalizing on the widespread interest my post on local DC politics generated yesterday, I'm following up with what happened. The Council wisely "postponed" voting on pay raises for themselves -- although from all their statements it seems like this postponement won't last long -- and the Post writeup was almost entirely about the proposed pay raise. Tacked on to the end was this paragraph:

In other action, the council approved an emergency bill that allows exceptions for businesses that are within 400 feet of a school, college or District-operated recreation area applying for liquor licenses. D.C. law prohibits such proximity, but the bill will allow exceptions for businesses in commercial areas.

And there it is, the little loophole coveted by the liquor industry and commercial real estate moguls that will now allow exceptions so that Jeff's Tap Room and Liquor Emporium can now open up next door to the elementary school and park. I think the argument was that with the liquor stores being open adjacent to the park, the drunks won't pass out on the sidewalks but rather on the park benches.

As far as the delayed pay raise goes, here's what the Post says Jim Graham (Ward 1) thought about the whole thing:

Like several other council members, Graham said yesterday that he never entered politics for the money. But he said he now sees a disparity between pay for the council and the two top jobs.

Right. And I imagine there's a relatively large disparity between his pay ($92K) and, say, the security guy operating the metal detector down at the Wilson Building. I know for certain there's a large disparity between what his part-time job pays and what the median household income is in the District of Columbia.