“For her to make comments like that, it’s stupid….She’s an angry woman.”
—Attorney General Peter Nickles, Oct. 25
In the vacuum created by the lack of a Fenty communications apparatus, Nickles has filled the void. The attorney general is always happy to talk—to the reporters he likes, anyway—and he’s liable to toss off pithy, compelling, but often ill-advised quotes. After Hartsock’s nomination was derailed, Nickles ordered her to stay in place for as long as 180 days, prompting Ward 3 Councilmember Mary Cheh to refer to the Fenty regime as “almost becoming a lawless administration.” Nickles went ad feminam, as above. The sexist undertones to the utterance led Nickles to deliver an apology to one of his most strident critics, accompanied by a bouquet of flowers.
Photo by Darrow Montgomery