The Perils of Protecting Politicians 24-7

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IN RECENT YEARS, you could walk past a certain house in Kalorama at 3:30 a.m. and spot a black SUV parked across the street with its engine running. Bored military types would be sitting inside, watching an Adam Sandler movie like "Billy Madison" or playing a golf game on a laptop. It's no coincidence that a noted Bush administration cabinet secretary lived there, under constant surveillance to make sure evil-doers did not disturb the quiet of D.C.'s quarter of diplomacy and power.

In a global capital such as our own, protecting the people who hold power is serious business. On property owned by a foreign government, it can be easy to erect a guardhouse, since D.C. zoning laws don't extend to the sovereign territory of another country.

But D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty is running into a little problem with the security booth the Metropolitan Police Department built outside his home in Crestwood. According to this week's Current, which, sadly, isn't online:

The Board of Zoning Adjustment has scheduled a July 3 hearing on the police department's application for a 'variance from side yard provisions to install accessory structure (24-hour manned security booth)' serving the mayor's residence. Approval would have to be retroactive, since the guardhouse is already in.

Hopefully for the mayor, the security booth isn't blocking any views of Rock Creek Park that neighbors might get testy about. Or else ...

Photo by Ricky Carioti/The Washington Post