The only good reason to shout down a mayoral debate? Announcing new Mayoral Power Rankings.
1. Muriel Bowser
What: Bowser regains her spot atop the Power Rankings the same way she does everything else in this campaign: by not screwing up. Bowser locked down the expected Post endorsement, pulled off her Ward 8 straw poll win, and raised enough money to pay every District resident to lip-sync for her amusement.
Why: How many more editorials does the Post have in store for Bowser before Election Day? One wag predicts two more Bowser editorials in the Post, along with another devoted to Catania’s misdeeds. Make your own guess in the comments.
Power Rankings Momentum: Rising.
2. David Catania
What: Election Day gets closer, and Catania lacks his breakout moment. Then again, it’s hard to gauge how close Bowser and Catania are without new polling.
Why: The Post editorial board’s ongoing feud with Catania offers some interesting contradictions. Catania campaign manager Ben Young offers one: How can the Post ding him for opposing the Nationals Park deal, while Post ed board favorite Adrian Fenty did the same?
“They couldn’t buy enough ink to support him,” Young says.
Power Rankings Momentum: Falling.
3. Carol Schwartz
What: The last major debate of the general election has passed, and with it, most of Schwartz’s free media. Expect more zany press releases.
Why: Only close viewers could catch an odd moment in Wednesday’s debate: Schwartz handing Catania a “thank you” card, a gag over the idea that working for city contractor M.C. Dean made him a better councilmember.
What’s Schwartz’s new career in prop comedy? Schwartz says she got the idea a few weeks ago when she remarked to her daughter that, the way the Catania talked about M.C. Dean, you would think he Catania deserved a thank-you card. Her daughter bought the cards, and Schwartz brought them to the NBC/Post debate unsure whether she would use them.
Unluckily for Schwartz, the M.C. Dean moment came and went during the debate before she could bring out the card. Instead, she had to resort to handing Catania the card after the debate had moved to another topic.
“I tried to do it at that moment but I wasn’t able to prevail,” Schwartz says.
And no, Schwartz didn’t write anything on the inside of the card.
Power Rankings Momentum: Stalled.
Honorable Mentions: “The Political Machine” puppet, so proud and yet so pensive. Ward 1 Councilmember Jim Graham, for embracing the bright side of lame-duckery. The Ward 8 debate heckler who told a rival heckler to “shut your face.” And finally, whoever tells LL who’s behind these mysterious anti-Catania signs.
Photos by Darrow Montgomery