WASHINGTON -- District of Columbia Mayor Vincent Gray (D) spoke about allegations that a "shadow campaign" helped his 2010 mayoral bid on Wednesday. B...

The ban on direct corporate donations to candidates won't by itself end corruption, but it's seen by reformers as an important first step.

Corruption in D.C. damages our chances for full voting rights and cheats District residents. Recent federal prosecutions, along with a cascade of elections, may help clean out the D.C. Council. But we need more.

Congressional meddling with local D.C. laws must end because it's just another form of corruption. Yet, as long as D.C.'s elected officials continue to embarrass the city with ethics scandals, we'll have trouble convincing the country.

Sure. It's great that the D.C. Council is working on Ethics Reform. But let's not forget that it's often a tenacious private citizen or internal whistleblower, usually not an elected official, who unearths unethical or even illegal activity.

In months of reporting by the mainstream media on topics completely irrelevant to the daily lives of District residents, I have a novel idea. Suppose we actually discuss what Mayor Gray is actually doing to help residents?