The People of Washington, DC, STILL Suffer from Taxation Without Representation. Let's Fix That. - Glenn Kirschner

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So friends, can I ask you a quick question? When you think of Washington, DC, what's the first thing that comes to mind? Politics? The nation's capital? Maybe, a city where somehow we still have taxation without representation?

Recently, I heard somebody say that she views Washington, DC, "as a city of service." First of all, I like that characterization. I have never heard DC referred to that way before. But it makes sense.

DC has the Congress. It has the executive branch. It has the judiciary. All populated by federal government employees. All public servants. In a very real sense, DC is like the national hub for public service.

The person who said that she views DC as a city of service is Kinney Zalesne. And Kinney is now running to be represent the people of DC in Congress.

For 35 years, Eleanor Holmes Norton as served as DC's delegate to Congress, but she is not running for the seat again.

Kinney Zalesne is running to be DC's delegate to Congress, and I just sat down with Kinny to ask her why she wants to represent people of DC in Congress, and why she views DC as a city of service. - Glenn Kirschner - 02/08/2026.

Find Kinney at: https://www.kinneyfordc.com

A little bit about Kinney:

Kinney Zalesne came to DC in 1995 for what was supposed to be a short stint in the Clinton White House. But she fell in love with the city, and for 30 years has never wanted to live anywhere else. She and her husband Scott have raised four kids here and been active in the community, serving in leadership positions in DC’s schools, pools, parks, and nonprofits.

DC gave Kinney opportunities to work across government, business, and the nonprofit sector. After serving as a White House Fellow with Vice President Gore, Kinney was Counsel to Attorney General Janet Reno at the US Department of Justice. She later helped lead the Strategy team at Microsoft. She has rolled up her sleeves in our neighborhoods, where she served as President of College Summit, a global-award-winning nonprofit, founded in a basement in Adams Morgan. College Summit helps students from low-income backgrounds go to college. Kinney was also Board Chair of a school in Ward 4 that doubled in enrollment during her tenure. And most recently, Kinney served as Deputy National Finance Chair of the DNC and National Co-Chair of Women for Harris.

Of all those roles, Kinney’s favorite was being President of College Summit (now called Peer Forward). The organization’s mission was to make sure that every student who could make it IN college made it TO college. Kinney built large-scale, diverse, powerful coalitions across the District and then the nation to make sure tens of thousands of local students got the opportunities they deserved.

Kinney’s skills and experiences are what DC needs now. She will build a broad-based, lasting, nationwide coalition of people to defend DC and ensure we remain a safe, affordable, and healthy place to live. - Glenn Kirschner - 02/08/2026.


Find Glenn on Substack: glennkirschner.substack.com