WASHINGTON -- District of Columbia Council Chairman Kwame Brown (D) has sent a letter to Ward 8 Councilmember Marion Barry (D) rebuking the former mayor for a press release sent this week from his council office attacking a political challenger.
In the letter, obtained by NewsChannel 8, Brown said that Barry's press release "appears to have violated [D.C. Council rules] because it was sent using a government email account, and plainly refers to a candidate for elected office..."
The Ward 8 councilmember attacked Natalie Williams, a former Barry spokeswoman who is trying to unseat Barry in April's Democratic primary, over an issue related to a proposed shelter for homeless women on Good Hope Road. While Barry endorsed Williams for her unsuccessful bid for the presidency of the Ward 8 Democrats in September, the councilmember's press release this week slammed Williams for not knowing much about the ward.
On Thursday, the D.C. Republican Party issued a statement criticizing Barry's use of public resources to attack a political challenger.
As The Washington Post's Mike DeBonis notes, Brown's letter does not mention "a referral to authorities for possible sanctions."