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Hearing the Council

Hearing the Council

Written by: Council of the District of Columbia
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We’re the District’s legislature, responsible for crafting laws. On Twitter, our goal is to engage with residents in an informative and conversational way. If you think you already know all about our councilmembers, or the topics they tackle, then you clearly haven’t listened to our “Hearing the Council” radio show and podcast. Even Wilson Building staffers and journalists get whole new insight into councilmembers from our “getting to know you” episodes, and our deep dives on policy topics give members 30+ minutes to discuss and face questions on a single topic of interest to them. A must-listen for reporters, advocates, and political junkies.All rights reserved Politics & Government
Episodes
  • Brianne Nadeau Talks Bottle Bill Ballyhoo, Housing Production, and the Comp Plan

    Brianne Nadeau Talks Bottle Bill Ballyhoo, Housing Production, and the Comp Plan
    Apr 23 2026
    In the latest Hearing the Council interview, we talk with our most frequent guest, Ward One Councilmember Brianne Nadeau. Having announced that she is not seeking reelection, she has just under nine months remaining in her Council service. In our interview, we talk about her legislative priorities for the remainder of 2026. We discuss her proposed reinvention of the Housing Production Trust Fund, how initial battle lines are forming over her bottle bill, the recent passage of the One Front Door Act, and the dynamics of the Council's upcoming rewrite of the Comp Plan. All that, plus some "fun round" this-and-that debates over coffee vs. tea, untoasted vs. toasted bagels, minimalist vs. maximalist decor, and much more!
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    36 mins
  • Phil Mendelson Talks Budget, and the Tricky CFO Relationship

    Phil Mendelson Talks Budget, and the Tricky CFO Relationship
    Mar 23 2026
    In the latest Hearing the Council video interview (our gala 100th episode!) from early March, Chairman Phil Mendelson talks about this year's budget situation. And, as seems to be the case pretty much every year recently, it's a complex budget year for reasons that are both unexpected and beyond the Council's control. We take a long look at the tricky relationship with the District's Chief Financial Officer. The role is independent by design, but absent any external controls or authority structure, what if anything limits the CFO's decisions and their impact? We take a deep dive into this question, and how it's playing out in larger-than-life ways in this year's budget process. Plus, as always, all Hearing the Council interviews have a "fun round." In the latest interview, we ask the Chairman which of his past or present colleagues he'd choose to partner with on hypothetical odd tasks, from shoveling a sidewalk to going clothes shopping to putting on a puppet show.
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    36 mins
  • Getting to Know Doni Crawford

    Getting to Know Doni Crawford
    Mar 11 2026
    In our latest Hearing the Council interview, we get to know our newest At-Large Councilmember, Doni Crawford. Appointed to the Council, by the Council, she has been serving since January 20, 2026. We hear about her unsuccessful first stint in DC, returning home jobless and dejected to live with her family in Pittsburgh, before returning triumphantly to DC for an ascending career arc culminating in her Council appointment. We discuss the origin of her name, the family tragedy that informed her Council swearing-in, plus whether any of her Council colleagues are fellow Spanish language learners or tennis players. Also: pondering parliamentary piercing protocols, how exciting it is to be Sofia the First, if hot breakfast eggs taste as good as we had hoped...and--as is traditional with inaugural Hearing the Council interviewees--dessert rankings.
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    39 mins
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