Welcome to Capital Commonsense.
A newsletter about policy and politics in the District of Columbia
Over the last four years, I’ve had the privilege of serving as an ANC Commissioner in the District of Columbia. It has been an incredibly rewarding experience. But it has also shown me something troubling: there are enormous gaps in how District residents learn about, follow, and understand their local government.
It’s almost a cliché at this point, but even many of the most seasoned politicos, many of whom are my friends and former colleagues—people who have spent decades immersed in national politics and policy—often know little about how the District government actually works or the debates shaping city policy. I get it. We only have so much brain capacity to dedicate to local policy and politics.
This problem has only worsened as local coverage at institutions like The Washington Post has declined. To be clear, there are many outstanding outlets doing important work to fill these gaps, including City Cast, The Washington Informer, The DC Line, 51st, The Washington City Paper, and others. But despite these efforts, there remains a real shortage of sustained reporting, analysis, and public attention on local issues.
The consequences of that information gap are significant. Many residents may remember that during the height of the city’s crime wave, it was ultimately a Substack writer—not a major traditional outlet—who broke the news that the U.S. Attorney’s Office was declining to prosecute roughly two-thirds of gun arrests. At a moment when the District faces serious economic, fiscal, and public safety challenges, the need for informed engagement with local policy has never been greater. My hope is that this newsletter can play a small role in helping more people understand the decisions shaping the city and encouraging deeper attention to the issues facing Washington today.