Deborah Simmons

Dollars and sense of HUD’s safety net

Two weeks ago, President Trump signed a piece of paper that gave his agency directors simple marching orders: Conduct a top-to-bottom review of safety net programs and policies. The goal is simple as well: Find ways to push more people off of welfare and into the workforce. Published April 26, 2018

Starbucks and its drive-thru future

Starbucks has a latte work to do to catch up with the competition when it comes to getting its drive-thru customers back on the road quickly. Published April 24, 2018

Uber tax increases for Metro

The District is considering Uber tax increases, which means you're going to have to pony up more for the privilege of using a ridesharing service. Much of the extra revenue will be diverted to Metro -- the D.C. region's transit service -- because authorities in D.C., Maryland and Virginia cannot imagine life without Metro. Published April 23, 2018

‘Synthetic marijuana’ is not marijuana, ‘stupid’

Fake weed is commonly referred to in the media as "synthetic marijuana." There's no Mary Jane in "synthetic marijuana." Published April 19, 2018

Paul Ryan, Kevin McCarthy, Betsy DeVos — the Big 3 needs to set education agenda

The next couple of years are not the time to begin asking if the U.S. Department of Education should stay or go. The Cabinet-level agency isn't going anywhere anytime soon. Yet now is the time to ask who's driving the education bus, who's riding shotgun, where is the bus heading and when will it arrive. Published April 16, 2018

Sex, crimes and videotapes

Is OK for a child to be prostituted because his parents' failed to pay the "coyotes" who "escorted" him into the United States across the border with Mexico? Published April 9, 2018

Cherry blossoms peak as Nationals prepare for All-Stars

Cherry blossoms spoiler alert: The nation's capital isn't the only U.S. city adorned by the glorious blooms of spring, but if your blossom-watching plans include hitting Washington, move quickly. Published April 5, 2018

Dreamers, dreams 50 years after MLK assassination

April 4 marks the 50th anniversary of the death of Martin Luther King in Memphis, Tennessee, where an assassination's single high-velocity shot pierced the right side of his face. Published April 2, 2018

Free preschool for many means free child care

The underpinnings of the universal pre-K movement appeared noble: Provide youngsters with basic academic and social skills and by kindergarten those kids would be on solid footing for grade school and beyond. Published March 29, 2018

Jeff Sessions has a D.C. parole decision to make

It has been written in stone since 1997 that the federal government has control of and authority over D.C.'s felons — in prison and on parole. Published March 26, 2018

Capitol Hill lawmakers in a spending crunch

Once the fiscal conservatism knob begins to drip, it never stops leaking money into public coffers. Published March 22, 2018

Parents need to do more to ensure their child’s safety

It takes a parent to raise a child, and there's no hands-free app for that. Published March 20, 2018

Brewing off the shores of the Chesapeake Bay

The Pamunkey Tribe is staking a claim but not in Maryland's Charles County, where the family of the first mayor of D.C. — Robert Brent — put down stakes before the Revolutionary War in what is now the town of Pomonkey and its environs. Published March 19, 2018

Kirk Cousins’ family shows what matters

Julie Hampton Cousins is likely pulling up stakes in Virginia and moving to Minnesota. Published March 15, 2018

Martin Luther King, guns, gun control

The eyes and ears of J. Edgar Hoover's FBI weren't in Parkland, Florida, on Valentine's Day or trawling the internet for menacing words by accused killer Nikolas Cruz. Published March 14, 2018

National School Walkout smackdown

Across the nation, kids are scheduled to walk out of school on Wednesday to honor the 17 victims killed in the massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas on Feb. 14 in Parkland, Florida. Published March 12, 2018

Washington, D.C.’s education con game

American education is a con game, too, only the hustle isn't to lure marks with playing cards and nutshells. No, in the Ed-Con Game, the shills are children, parents and voters -- everyday, ordinary American citizens who expect politicians to say what they mean and mean what they say. Published March 8, 2018

Paging Mayor Muriel Bowser

Madame Mayor, as a Christian woman, you're probably quite aware that John 8:32 offers powerful advice for people, including those running so fast they're likely to meet themselves turning the corner. Well, the race for your re-election began four years ago, and now you must pause. Published March 5, 2018