Deborah Simmons

DEBORAH SIMMONS: Make D.C. a destination. For what?

One of the top priorities of the Greater New York Avenue Gateway Group is to "identify challenges and concerns of the business and community stakeholders and seek changes." Published January 7, 2016

DEBORAH SIMMONS: College bowl-game trivia

Which came first: The NCAA or the Rose Bowl? Published December 31, 2015

DEBORAH SIMMONS: Who said what in the year that was 2015

The newsworthy things people said in 2015 could fill pages of The Washington Times newspaper and then some. There are so many quotes, in fact, the sheer volume might break Al Gore's greatest invention: the Internet. I've selected several notable quotes to refresh your memory, some that you might have missed and a couple on one of my favorite topics, sports. Published December 28, 2015

DEBORAH SIMMONS: Three things about Christmastime 2015 in Washington, D.C.

I'm not going to beat about the bush. It's Christmas Day, I'm certain you know the reason for the season (because the fruit remind us every year), and I think you'd want to get back to your celebratory mood ASAP. So, believe it or not I'm not going to be Deborah Downer. Here are three things about the December holiday season and our nation's capital. Published December 24, 2015

DEBORAH SIMMONS: The D.C. job market, the D.C. government plan

What do the D.C. and regional job markets want and what will they need? Published December 21, 2015

DEBORAH SIMMONS: Joy to the world

There's a noticeable un-Christmaslike spirit in the air. Published December 17, 2015

DEBORAH SIMMONS: Voters and Vince Gray’s rose-tinted contacts

"We want to see a candidate who is going to fight for Ward 7, not someone who will cause us to spend more money on a special election in two years after they have sought and gained a higher office," the Democratic operative said. "The current chair of Ward 7 Democrats, Ed Potillo, has entered the Ward 7 [D.C.] Council race. Our ward needs fresh, new ideas. What we don't need is a rehash of the same old familiar." Published December 15, 2015

DEBORAH SIMMONS: D.C. marijuana lovers push to legalize commercial pot

Whoa. Commercial marijuana. Published December 14, 2015

DEBORAH SIMMONS: Which way our children, future armed forces?

This is a heads-up sorta week regarding our military. So the primary question is this: Where, when and how did we go wrong? Published December 10, 2015

DEBORAH SIMMONS: Vince Gray free at last to hit reset button

Vince Gray can put the hankie away. Published December 9, 2015

DEBORAH SIMMONS: Donald Trump isn’t coming to Washington

Donald Trump has lost the Muslim vote. Published December 7, 2015

LIFE AS IT HAPPENS: Hey, Donald Trump, when memory fails go to Google

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump had a senior moment Sunday night, when he wondered aloud on Twitter what Muslim Americans President Obama could have been referring to when the president said "Muslim Americans are our friends and our neighbors, our coworkers, our sports heroes." And whether Mr. Obama was racially profiling? Published December 7, 2015

DEBORAH SIMMONS: After San Bernardino, gun control or immigration reform?

Now that guns and scapegoats are the new normal, and immigration reform and "refugees" are political weapons, let's merge the two and devise a reasonable plan for solutions. Published December 3, 2015

LIFE AS IT HAPPENS: Key facts about San Bernardino and SWAT

Police in Philadelphia and Los Angeles can lay claim to Special Weapons and Tactics teams, or SWAT. Published December 2, 2015

LIFE AS IT HAPPENS: Spike Lee’s ‘Chi-Raq’: The religion sidebar

Spike Lee's latest, the star-studded "Chi-Raq," opens nationwide on Friday. Published December 1, 2015

DEBORAH SIMMONS: William Porter, 1st Freddie Gray defendant, set to testify

All eyes and ears are on Baltimore — and if they aren't, they should be because the die is cast. Published November 30, 2015

DEBORAH SIMMONS: Smithsonian exhibit honors Dorothy Height

Many a believer holds to the biblical truth that a woman covers her head to show subordination to man. If Dorothy Irene Height were alive today, I'd ask her her thoughts. Published November 26, 2015

LIFE AS IT HAPPENS: Post-Thanksgiving giving

Outspending your means can set a dangerous precedent. These 10 charities have run deficits in each of their last 3 fiscal years, establishing a pattern of overspending. Published November 24, 2015

DEBORAH SIMMONS: Thanksgiving tradition includes sweet potato vs. pumpkin pie

Well, the Lord and the ancestors obviously willing, the creek didn't rise and overwhelm, so it's Thanksgiving again. Time for the four Fs: faith, family, food and football. Published November 23, 2015

DEBORAH SIMMONS: The politics of homelessness

It is not against the law to be homeless, yet the way the Bowser administration is approaching the homeless problem is (practically) criminal. On Wednesday night homeless people living in about 20 tents near the Kennedy Center were put on notice: By 2 p.m. Friday, you have to skedaddle. Published November 19, 2015