Alex Koma
@AlexKomaDC
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Senior D.C. politics reporter, WAMU 88.5. Pittsburgh born and forever a Hokie. Send story ideas or spam to akoma(at)https://t.co/juRGKFY5bq
Washington, DC
Joined August 2015
.@NateforDC seems to have launched a bid for the at-large Council seat held by Anita Bonds next year. https://t.co/jezG0ynhkK He finished third in the crowded race against her in 2022: if ranked choice voting becomes a reality in 2026, this will be a very closely watched race.
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Normally I don’t post the hate mail I get whenever I go on NPR (otherwise what else would I do all day?) but this one seems relevant as Bowser catches more flak. Her critics think she’s giving cover to Trump by praising her “federal partners.” Plainly, MAGA is taking notice!
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Norton’s appearance here has only intensified chatter about her political future. Former Bowser statehood director Jason Fink told me he’d run if EHN runs again. I hear Shadow Rep. Oye Owolewa is also considering the race (or an at large Council bid) now that he’s retiring…
Eleanor Holmes Norton gives her first (I think?) news conference since Trump pushed to take over public safety in DC 3+ weeks ago. She delivers her remarks—speaking so quietly some struggle to hear—and is then led to a car. She doesn’t stay for other speeches or media questions.
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Bowser got another crack at this question today and tried to clean this up a bit, criticizing ICE for "terrorizing communities" and "not having enough information about where people are." "I'm starting to think some of what I said was lost in my remarks" yesterday, she said.
I’ve heard a lot of complaints about Bowser’s comments since her press conference (including from Bowser allies) and you’re seeing the dam break on CMs criticizing her too. Especially notable to see White do so, though, considering his 2026 plans. To quote @daveweigel, folks…
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People living east of the Anacostia River have tons of demands for Trump: Better gun control, more money for schools/counselors, stop cutting SNAP/TANF. But all that'd require a government operating in good faith, not just looking to put on a show: https://t.co/JNTH0Q5I1J
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New: Stephen Miller says Trump's focus on DC is meant to help Black residents. But people living in the city's historically Black wards don't want this kind of help. So what could the feds actually do for wards 7 and 8? I asked and a federal police takeover didn't make the list:
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I’ve heard a lot of complaints about Bowser’s comments since her press conference (including from Bowser allies) and you’re seeing the dam break on CMs criticizing her too. Especially notable to see White do so, though, considering his 2026 plans. To quote @daveweigel, folks…
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I hear there was a big checkpoint involving both MPD and feds along N. Capitol Street last night, across from the McMillan reservoir. To the extent there’s police activity outside of downtown, it’s increasingly taking this form: traffic checkpoints with immigration agents.
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Video of a scary scene in Adams Morgan last night is making the rounds on DC listservs. The feds (presumably ICE) seemed to be making immigration/traffic stops. When protesters started shouting, one pointed his Taser at them until other protesters tried to deescalate things...
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Pirro's attacks on the law to reduce prison sentences for people who were convicted of crimes under the age of 25 has particularly alarmed returning citizens and their advocates. It's a familiar line from federal prosecutors, but no less harmful to them: https://t.co/B6cNF2SNW7
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New: Jeanine Pirro has used Trump's focus on DC as a chance to bash local laws meant to help people convicted of crimes when they're young. These laws don't have any bearing on crime rates, despite her claims otherwise. Still, local leaders are considering working with her...
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I was talking to Stuart Anderson, longtime Ward 8 pol, when this news broke. His reaction: “I hope he gets a flat tire.”
White House says President Trump to travel into DC neighborhoods tonite to meet cops and/or Natl Guard doing his crime "surge" patrols. His motorcade likely will give away any surprise showing up. Please be prepared to respectfully welcome him to your neighborhood. @wcp
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The responses I’ve gotten to this have been about what you’d expect: no, the feds aren’t really east of the river. Also sharing this amusing anecdote from someone who lives in Bellevue but works in Navy Yard…
Kudos to the Post for pushing back on this because the anecdotal evidence we have just doesn’t support any surge in policing in wards 7 and 8. I’ll put this to my followers in those neighborhoods: are you seeing federal agents/the National Guard? If so, what’re they doing?
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Kudos to the Post for pushing back on this because the anecdotal evidence we have just doesn’t support any surge in policing in wards 7 and 8. I’ll put this to my followers in those neighborhoods: are you seeing federal agents/the National Guard? If so, what’re they doing?
My latest: The White House says hundreds have been arrested amid Trump’s D.C. police takeover. But there's black hole instead of the usually readily accessible info surrounding arrests. Basic questions are going unanswered. More here, with @emmauber7: https://t.co/clxsNtdQzE
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Peaks could've faced 4 years in prison: now he'll face 2 years of probation, which has its own onerous terms. So the question is: Who is served by throwing a teen like this behind bars? Would that really make the city safer, given what we know about the carceral system?
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Peaks' attorneys told the court he's never faced trouble with the law before, even as a kid, and the shooting only happened after "persistent provocations." They describe him as a college kid who took a leave of absence after his parents couldn't afford to keep him in school
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Read the police narrative here, and another picture emerges. This was not some cold-blooded shooting: Peaks seems to have gotten into a confrontation with another man on the bus and scuffled with him. He shot him only after the pair repeatedly argued/shoved each other.
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To Pirro, this is a prime failure of the Youth Rehabilitation Act, which gives judges discretion to hand out more lenient sentences for people under 24. https://t.co/tCLzd0jo1q She's painted the shooter, Javarry Peaks, as a violent criminal who needs to be locked up for good.
wusa9.com
The Youth Rehabilitation Act gives judges broad discretion when sentencing defendants who were under 24 when their crimes were committed, angering prosecutors
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U.S. Attorney for D.C. Jeanine Pirro has made this case, where a 19-year-old pleaded guilty to shooting a man on a bus and was sentenced to probation, a key part of her crusade against some DC laws. https://t.co/tL0DzCNIyP Will it surprise you to learn there's more to the story?
justice.gov
Javarry Peaks, 19, of the District, pleaded guilty Friday May 2nd, to the March 2025 shooting of a stranger while inside of a Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority bus that was traveling...
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As if this week were not bizarre enough: Mount Pleasant residents tell me a group of federal agents gathered for a photo-op near a pro-immigrant banner, pictured below, then tore it down. In its place, they left a dildo. A neighbor's Ring camera captured the whole thing...
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