Breakfast links: Honk if you have a vote in Congress

Take action (if you can)

Live in Virginia? Ask your reps to save Amtrak service. … Live anywhere outside DC? Ask your Senators to preserve bike/ped funding. … Live in DC? You’re screwed, but if you know anyone in Illinois or Louisiana, ask them to contact their reps to oppose riders on DC’s budget.

Who’s popular in Virginia

61% of Virginians approve of Governor McDonnell. 64% approve of Senator Mark Warner, 47% of Ken Cuccinelli, 55% of strict regulations on abortion clinics. (Post)

Kwame Brown now for ethics

Kwame Brown is planning to introduce ethics legislation, but residents will have to look closely to figure out if it’s serious or just a smokescreen to distract from his many problems. (DCist)

Should Council be full-time or part?

Some think DC Councilmembers should not be allowed outside employment, because of conflicts of interest. Meanwhile, Los Angeles has full-time members and some think they should be part-time. (DeBonis)

ACT: Build Bethesda entrance faster

The Action Committee for Transit is raising alarms over a plan to rehab Bethesda elevators one year before Montgomery County adds a new entrance to the station. They want the new entrance’s timeline moved up. (TBD)

No more taking off shoes for kids

The ridiculous sight of parents taking off their toddlers’ shoes at airport security checkpoints will finally end, as TSA rolls out new screening procedures for kids under 12. Removing shoes generally will be phased out, but not until there are new scanners even though no other country requires it. (Post)

Suddenly it’s historic?

Walmart opponents have now turned to historic preservation to try to stop the store, filing an application to landmark the old Curtis Chevrolet, though the DC Preservation League is okay with the new building. (City Paper)

And…

Arlington wants stores to keep doors closed (literally, not metaphorically). (ARLnow) … Exxon asked for a $5.2 billion highway so it could move its headquarters; Texas eagerly complied. (Streetsblog) … Any Montgomery County curfew won’t come until November, if at all; councilmembers remain divided. (Examiner)