The D.C. Board of Elections and Ethics is expected later this week to certify Vincent Orange as the new at-large city councilman. Many people have insisted he will change the legislature’s current direction. That’s a huge burden. The legislature has floundered under Chairman Kwame Brown who, along with other members, has been ensnared in scandals. Residents who went to the polls last week complained of the stench of corruption coming from the John A. Wilson Building. They chose someone they perceived as an outsider — except the new voice is an old voice.
Orange is a once and future councilman. He served two terms as the representative for Ward 5. He had an indisputable record of achievement during that time and was intolerant of an obstinate bureaucracy: He forced out Inspector General Charles Maddox and refused to confirm Judy Banks as permanent personnel director. (Interestingly, Banks is at the center of the hiring scandal that has engulfed Mayor Vincent Gray.)
