A morning roundup of news, opinion, and links from City Paper and around the District. Send tips and ideas to citydesk@washingtoncitypaper.com.

In a one-party city with a civic focus on education, an advocacy group like Democrats for Education Reform sounds as wholesome as Mom and apple pie. But the New York-based PAC recently injected itself into a complicated school debate when it employed phone banking to lean on school board members. The PAC wants them to approve using mostly standardized test scores to rate schools, a policy with which many of them disagree.

LEADING THE MORNING NEWS:

  • Fred Fiske, a Washington radio legend, dies at 96. [WAMU]

  • Cardinal Donald Wuerl says church will be “voice” for immigrants but not necessarily sanctuary. [Post]

  • Washington Nationals holding auditions for anthem singers. [NBC4]

  • Six people shot in one week on Southeast’s Wheeler Road. [Post]

  • And five people, including a child, were shot in Northeast last night. [WTOP]

  • DC Water will replace all home meters to prevent billing errors. [NBC4]

  • Look for flurries today and expect a cold weekend. Then it’s back to spring. [ABC7]

  • Howard University celebrates 150th anniversary, as students question the administration’s relationship with Trump. [NBC4]

  • Hhgregg appliances & electronics will close its area stores. [WBJ]

  • D.C.’s School Without Walls investigates swastika. [Post]

  • Taliyah Renn’e Thomas, 12, went missing in Southwest. [WUSA]

RECENT CITY PAPER STORIES TO HELP YOU MAKE SENSE OF YOUR DAY:

LOOSE LIPS LINKS, by Jeffrey Anderson (tips? jeff.anderson@washingtoncitypaper.com)

  • International money laundering takedown.[NBC4]

  • A Supreme Court win for black Virginia voters. [Times]

  • Homeless shelter policy showdown.[WAMU]

  • An open letter to gay Republicans. [Blade]

  • There’s a literacy initiative in Ward 7. [WUSA9]

  • D.C. targets businesses that owe back taxes. [WJLA]

ARTS LINKS, by Matt Cohen (tips? mcohen@washingtoncitypaper.com)

  • All the prep that went into the Hirshhorn’s Yayoi Kusama exhibition. [Post]

  • Speaking of Kusama, here’s a rough estimate of how many selfies will be snapped over the course of the exhibition’s run. [WCP]

  • Julie Kent has big plans for the Washington Ballet. [Washingtonian]

  • Fridays at Takoma Station you can catch the longest-running go-go residency. [Post]

YOUNG & HUNGRY LINKS, by Laura Hayes (tips? lhayes@washingtoncitypaper.com)

  • Forthcoming Truxton Inn looks part library, part sultry hotel bar. [WCP]

  • Poké Papa will open serving the city’s trendiest food later this month. [Washingtonian]

  • It’s almost CSA season. Use this map to pick the best one. [Post]

  • DGS Delicatessen says goodbye in Virginia’ Mosaic District. [Eater]

  • Prather’s on the Alley coming to Mount Vernon Triangle. [WBJ]

  • Wow: D.C. restaurants raised $80,000 during inauguration weekend’s All in Service campaign. [DCist]

HOUSING COMPLEX LINKS, by Andrew Giambrone (tips? agiambrone@washingtoncitypaper.com)

  • Unemployment among black residents is worse than in 2007. [WCP]

  • Slum conditions at Sanford buildings should be a “call to arms.” [Post]

  • Six-story mixed-use project planned for Adams Morgan. [UrbanTurf]

  • Converted Italian embassy apartments to open in 2018. [UrbanTurf]

  • D.C. deputy attorney general who worked housing cases dies. [Post]

  • Advocates want to keep D.C.’s existing affordable housing. [GGW]

  • Controversial Kingman Park project hits permitting snag. [Curbed DC]

  • Some handy data on the District’s pricey rental market. [Curbed DC]

  • Only one in 10 millennials say they will stay in D.C. long-term. [Post]

Sign up: To get District Line Daily—or any of our other email newsletters—sent straight to your mailbox, click here.