Democrats play musical chairs

Muriel Bowser wants her supporters to know she still isn’t scared of the Big Boys.

To prove herself, Miss Bowser pulled up her Big Girl slacks on Thursday, stiffened her back and blasted the guys … via Twitter.

“We’ve pushed for more affordable housing, for better schools, for women’s rights, for public safety, for #DCValues, for #DCStatehood. Our finances are excellent, and our government is ethical, accountable, & transparent. We managed through a pandemic & we are making a comeback. But there are still challenges for us to tackle, and we have more work to do. That’s why I am running for reelection to be your mayor of the greatest city in the world, my hometown, and soon to be the #51stState.”

So it goes. The butts playing musical chairs don’t change. Miss Bowser has been playing the game since 2004, when she won a seat as a neighborhood commissioner, then two-time Ward 4 council member before winning her first term as mayor in 2014.

Then, as now, familiar Big Boys were chasing down the mayoral seat. One of those familiar names in the hunt this time: Robert White, an at-large member of the D.C. Council.  

Trayon White, the Ward 8 member on the council, is running for the mayor’s seat, too.

Both are Democrats, like the mayor, and both are native sons. For her part, the mayor is also D.C.-born.

Meanwhile, voters in Ward 5, home to the city’s largest Roman Catholic enclave, as well as Fort Lincoln residential and retail development, and the National Arboretum, are being drawn to the 2022 polls for two additional elections.

The ward’s current council member, Kenyan McDuffie, is running for D.C. attorney general, and its former councilman, Vincent Orange, is seeking his former council seat.

If you’re looking for the names of Libertarian and Republican candidates, they don’t seem interested in playing musical chairs or seriously contesting seats on the Board of Education, which aren’t partisan, or the Advisory Neighborhood Commission. Tsk, tsk, tsk.

So much for a diverse political universe with a mantra Black Lives Matter.

The critical issues facing the District are the same ones that were challenging City Hall before the last mayoral election: crime, education, health care and housing/homelessness. The issue of redistricting is pressing upon political leaders, too, because the U.S. Constitution mandates attention.

Too bad, is it not, that not all “elected” voices will have a say in the redistricting decision?

Is the mayor too busy listening to the musical chairs tune? She hasn’t time to speak with residents about the rhythm and repercussions of redrawing political and socio-economic maps?

Say what? That’s why she tweeted her announcement, huh?

Got it.

• Deborah Simmons can be contacted at dsimmons@washingtontimes.com.