K Street, epicenter of American lobbying.

K Street is a major thoroughfare in the United States capital of Washington, D.C. known for the numerous think tanks, lobbyists, and advocacy groups that exercise influence from this location. Download high resolution version (1024x1280, 153 KB)K Street NW at 19th Street in Washington D.C., part of downtown Washingtons maze of high-powered lobbyists and law firms. ... Download high resolution version (1024x1280, 153 KB)K Street NW at 19th Street in Washington D.C., part of downtown Washingtons maze of high-powered lobbyists and law firms. ... In politics, a capital (also called capital city or political capital — although the latter phrase has an alternative meaning based on an alternative meaning of capital) is the principal city or town associated with its government. ... Map showing Washington, D.C.s location in relation to the surrounding states of Maryland and Virginia Washington, D.C. is the capital city of the United States of America. ... This article is about the institution. ... Lobbying is the practice of private advocacy with the goal of influencing a governing body, in order to ensure that an individuals or organizations point of view is represented in the government. ... An advocacy group, interest group or lobbying group is a group, however loosely or tightly organized, doing advocacy: those determined to encourage or prevent changes in public policy without trying to be elected. ...

Location in the city

There are two separate roads designated K Street in Washington, D.C.; they are east-west streets in D.C.'s northern half and southern half. When not being qualified, K Street almost always refers to the northern K Street, as it is the more famous of the two.

The northern K Street has its western starting point as K St. N.W. in the southern part of Georgetown in the city's Northwestern quadrant. The road progresses into the downtown area, changing designation from K St. N.W. to K St. N.E. after intersecting N. Capitol St. (Which is N. Capitol St. N.W to the south of this intersection and N. Capitol St. N.E. to the north). This K Street's eastern end is at Florida Ave. in the Northeastern quadrant, just south of Gallaudet University. There are numerous places around the world named Georgetown. ... Color-enhanced USGS satellite image of Washington, DC, taken April 26, 2002. ... Color-enhanced USGS satellite image of Washington, DC, taken April 26, 2002. ... Gallaudet University was the first school for the advanced education of the deaf and hard-of-hearing. ...

In alignment with the city's Cartesian-coordinate-based street system, there is another K Street in its southern half; this one running between the Potomac River at the western edge of the Southwestern quadrant (as K St. S.W.) to the Anacostia River at the eastern edge of the Southeastern quadrant (as K St. S.E.). Cartesian means relating to the French mathematician and philosopher Descartes, who, among other things, worked to merge algebra and Euclidean geometry. ... The Potomac River at Great Falls, MD from Olmsted Island, water relatively low The Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States (USA). ... Color-enhanced USGS satellite image of Washington, DC, taken April 26, 2002. ... Color-enhanced USGS satellite image of Washington, DC, taken April 26, 2002. ...

Traffic configuration

Current

K Street provides a major east-west thoroughfare for traffic through Washington, primarily from Mount Vernon Square (location of the new D.C. Convention Center) to the Whitehurst Freeway. K Street also runs through Georgetown under the Whitehurst Freeway; however, most westbound traffic exits to the freeway. A segment of U.S. Highway 29 runs along K Street. K Street also runs as a tunnel underneath Washington Circle, allowing traffic to avoid the circle, which is an intersection of 23rd St, Pennsylvania Ave, and New Hampshire Ave. Mount Vernon Square is a city square in the Northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C., U.S.A. It is located where the following streets would otherwise intersect: Massachusetts Avenue, New York Avenue, K Street, and 8th Street. ... The D.C. Convention Center is a new, 2. ... The Whitehurst Freeway is an elevated highway over K Street in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. It was built in 1949 to allow traffic on U.S. Highway 29 and Canal Road to bypass Georgetown between the Key Bridge and K Street downtown. ... United States Highway 29 is a north-south United States highway that runs for 1,036 miles (1,667 km) from the western suburbs of Baltimore to Pensacola, Florida. ... Washington Circle is a traffic circle in the Northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C., U.S.A.. It is located at the intersection of Pennsylvania Avenue, New Hampshire Avenue, K Street, and 23rd Street, N.W. The through lanes of K Street (which are U.S. Highway 29) tunnel under... A traffic circle is an intersection with a circular shape and, usually, a central island. ... Pennsylvania Avenue street sign, 2004. ...

Service roadways and main roadway

Portions of the street, in both directions, are divided into both "local" (or service) lanes and "express" lanes, allowing through traffic to, hopefully, travel more smoothly across town. However, since that division of traffic lanes is universally acknowledged to be a failure, local officials have proposed to remove the barriers to make room for a busway (see next section). A frontage road for U.S. Highway 71 (a freeway) near Carthage, Missouri. ...

Proposed

Because of K Street's standing as a major thoroughfare, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, the local transit authority, has been studying making K Street a possible busway. The scope of the project would be to have the busway run from Georgetown University, across Downtown Washington on K Street, switching to Massachusetts Avenue at Mount Vernon Square, and finishing at Union Station. The Jackson Graham Building, where Metro headquarters is located. ... Bus rapid transit (BRT) is a relatively new umbrella term for urban mass transportation services utilizing buses to perform premium services on existing roadways or dedicated rights-of-way. ... Not to be confused with the University of Georgetown in Georgetown, Guyana or Georgetown College in Georgetown, KY. Georgetown University is a private university in the United States. ... Massachusetts Avenue, colloquially abbreviated Mass. ... Mount Vernon Square is a city square in the Northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C., U.S.A. It is located where the following streets would otherwise intersect: Massachusetts Avenue, New York Avenue, K Street, and 8th Street. ... Burnhams Union Station: the central block of the immense front façade of Union Station Union Station is the grand ceremonial train station designed to be the entrance to Washington, DC when it opened in 1907. ...

Lobbying

"K Street" is a common metonym for Washington's lobbying industry. In the part which passes from Georgetown through a portion of Downtown Washington, many big lobbying firms are located; this part of the street is sometimes referred to as the fourth branch of government. Lobbying firms have great influence in U.S. national politics due to monetary resources and the revolving door policy of hiring former government officials. In rhetoric and cognitive linguistics, metonymy (in Greek μετά (meta) = after/later and όνομα (onoma) = name) (IPA: mə-tŏnə-mē) is the use of a single characteristic to identify a more complex entity. ... Lobbying is the practice of private advocacy with the goal of influencing a governing body, in order to ensure that an individuals or organizations point of view is represented in the government. ...

Historically, K Street firms hire ex-politicians from both major parties since the party in power can vary between elections and among the legislative and executive branches in government.

The K Street Project, according to Washington Monthly editor Nicholas Confessore, is an attempt to build a new Republican political machine "built upon patronage, contracts and one-party rule ... among Washington's thousands of trade associations and corporate offices, their tens of thousands of employees and the hundreds of millions of dollars in political money at their disposal." Republican is a term used generally to describe a number of different organisations, principles, or political movements, and/or the persons supporting these. ...

The theory behind the project, Confessore wrote, boils down to this: "As Republicans control more and more K Street jobs, they will reap more and more K Street money, which will help them win larger and larger majorities on the Hill." Republican is a term used generally to describe a number of different organisations, principles or political movements, and/or the persons supporting these. ...

However, Jack Abramoff's recent guilty pleas to numerous felonies is calling the so-called K Street Project into question. Jack Abramoff (right) talking to his lawyer (left) Jack A. Abramoff (born February 28, 1959) is an attorney and super lobbyist who, on January 3, 2006, pled guilty to three criminal felony counts in federal court[1] and, on January 4, 2006, pled guilty in a separate matter to two...

K Street in the media

The Associated Press Washington Bureau and the AP Broadcast News Center are situated on K Street. The street also inspired a television series on the HBO network by the same name, K Street. Associated Press logo This article concerns the news service. ... HBO logo HBO (Home Box Office) is a premium cable television network. ... K Street is a 2003 HBO television series inspired by the Washington, DC street of the same name, K Street, due to the streets reputation as being the center of lobbying interests in Washington. ...

External links

• K Street Busway project leaflet (.pdf format)