The Hoya: December 6, 2016

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GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY’S NEWSPAPER OF RECORD SINCE 1920 thehoya.com

Georgetown University • Washington, D.C. Vol. 98, No. 24, © 2016

Tuesday, december 6, 2016

CONTINUED DOMINANCE

The women’s basketball team extended its winning streak to five games Sunday.

EDITORIAL GUSA must work to ensure fairness in its future referendums.

THE ‘ALT-RIGHT’ IN DC The white nationalist movement hosted an event in DC last month.

OPINION, A2

NEWS, A4

SPORTS, A10

Council Postpones Release of Results Inquiry into GUSA senate restructuring vote continues Jeff Cirillo

Hoya Staff Writer

The results of last Thursday’s Georgetown University Student Association senate restructuring referendum will not be released or certified before winter break, after the GUSA Constitutional Council extended its enjoinment of the Election Commission at a public hearing yesterday. The ruling comes on the heels of a complaint of unlawful electioneering filed late Thursday evening. The complaint alleged that GUSA members violated the association’s constitution and bylaws by electioneering at polling stations, offering food at polling stations as bribes, placing an excessive amount of “yes” posters at polling stations and locating tabling stations outside permitted tabling zones. The Election Commission normally has 72 hours after the end of voting for the referendum to release the results, which slotted

the release for Sunday at 11:59 p.m. However, this evening’s decision ensures the enjoinment will remain in place until the council announces its formal opinion on the complaint by Jan. 20. GUSA bylaws require the council to release its formal opinion 10 working days after the case is heard, excluding final examination periods and holiday breaks. The council said it plans to write its decision during winter break. The commission first announced it would hold the results early Friday morning after the Constitutional Council initially received the complaint alleging campaign violations. The decision to continue holding the election results past the typical deadline was announced at 6:08 p.m., several hours after the council held the public hearing on the complaint. See GUSA, A6

STEPHANIE YUAN/THE HOYA

At an event hosted by the McDonough School of Business in Gaston Hall yesterday afternoon, Vice President Joe Biden discussed the positive effects of financial regulation on the economy after the 2009 financial crisis.

Biden Cautions Against Deregulation Ian Scoville Hoya Staff Writer

To ensure the 2009 financial crisis does not repeat itself, the United States should keep financial regulations in place after President Barack Obama leaves office, according to Vice President Joe Biden in a speech in Gaston Hall on Monday. “On almost every measure, Americans are better off today than they were years ago, but there are still a lot of people being left behind,” Biden said.

“It wasn’t an accident. It happened because we made some very tough, very unpopular decisions, and things turned out to be the right call on balance.” President-elect Donald Trump said during his campaign he would repeal the the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act in 2010, which introduced a series of regulations designed to prevent a recurrence of the causes that led to the Great Recession. Paul Volcker, who was chairman of the Federal Re-

serve under President Ronald Reagan from 1979 to 1987 and chaired Obama’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board from 2009 to 2011, introduced Biden at the event. Volcker characterized the country’s current economy as strong. “Our performance here in the United States stands out particularly in contrast to the rest of the industrialized world,” Volcker said. “To my mind, it’s very important we have reached the point, we have reached that point of full

employment, consistent with reasonable price stability, and the prospect we can maintain that in the months and years ahead.” However, Biden argued there are still groups of Americans not benefitting from economic growth. “There’s a lot of people we should be paying attention to, but quite frankly, neither party paid enough attention to. I know every time I talk about it, it’s ‘Middle Class Joe’ again,” See BIDEN, A6

Fake News Prompts Pizzeria Gun Scare Campus Plan Receives Approval Aly Pachter Hoya Staff Writer

Hannah Urtz

A man was arrested Sunday afternoon after walking into a pizzeria in Northwest Washington, D.C., with an assault rifle and discharging his weapon, citing a desire to self-investigate a false online conspiracy theory linking the pizzeria to a child sex trafficking ring, according to the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Police Department. Edgar Welch, 28, from North Carolina told police he had driven from North Carolina to the D.C. restaurant, Comet Ping Pong, because of “Pizzagate,” a theory falsely accusing the restaurant and its owners of housing a child sex trafficking ring led by former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and her campaign chief, John Podesta.

“There’s no denying the corrosive effect that some of these false reports have had on our political debate.” BARBARA FEINMAN TODD Director, Journalism Program

Welch entered the building about 3 p.m., pointed a weapon at an employee of the restaurant, who fled and notified the police, then discharged his weapon inside the building, according to a statement released by MPD on Monday.

featured

Hoya Staff Writer

MV JANTZEN

Edgar Welch was arrested Sunday for discharging an assault rifle at the Comet Ping Pong pizzeria after reading an online conspiracy theory about the restaurant. After about 45 minutes of searching the building, Welch surrendered peacefully to the MPD. “Two firearms were recovered inside the location. An additional weapon was recovered from the suspect’s vehicle,” the statement reads. “There were no reported

injuries.” After a Monday court hearing, Welch is being held in jail and has been charged with assault with a dangerous weapon, along with three other weapons charges.WelchcarriedanAR-15assaultstyle weapon as well as a rifle and a folding knife while conducting

his search of the restaurant. Patrons inside Comet Ping Pong fled the restaurant as other businesses nearby went on lockdown at the recommendation of District police. See SHOOTING, A6

The Washington, D.C. Zoning Commission unanimously approved Georgetown University’s 20-year campus plan in a hearing Dec. 1, ending a four-yearlong process led by the Georgetown Community Partnership. The 20-year plan, which prioritizes student housing renovations, outlines future academic spaces and plans revitalized on-campus student life, spans from January 2017 through 2036, making it the longest standing campus plan in Georgetown’s history. Under the D.C. zoning code, all universities in the District are mandated to obtain formal approval of their campus plans by the Zoning Commission. The GCP, a group developed after the 2010 Campus Plan’s contentious drafting and approval process between neighbors and the university, participated in discussions with representatives from the Georgetown University Student Association, university administrators and neighborhood representatives from local citizens’ associations and advisory neighborhood commissions. The plan emphasizes the main campus as a hub for student activity and life, including the creation of a student life corridor extending from O’Donovan Hall to the Leavey Center, while focusing on the improvement of existing liv-

ing spaces, rather than the construction of new buildings. Renovation plans include improvements to Village A, the Alumni Square apartments and Henle Village, as well as the creation of a green space on the north side of campus between Darnall Hall and the Medstar Georgetown University Hospital.

“This time around, students were very much a part of the process.” ENUSHE KHAN (MSB ’17) President, GUSA

GUSA President Enushe Khan (MSB ’17), who sits on the GCP Steering Committee and the GCP’s Master Planning Working Group, made up of students, administrators and neighbors to draft the campus plan, said this year’s process better incorporated the wishes of all parties involved. “This time around, students were very much a part of the process. We maintained open communication with university administrators and neighbors, and we focused on coming to shared agreements,” Khan said. “This plan was See ZONING, A6

NEWS

OPINION

SPORTS

Trump’s Effects Examined The SFS began its weeklong series of discussions on responses to Donald Trump’s presidency Friday. A5

Informing Gender Issues As gender inequality persists worldwide, campus initiatives can help to combat gender violence. A3

Record Weekend The swimming and diving team saw four school records broken at the Bucknell Invitational this weekend. A10

NEWS Residents Charged for Chairs

opinion A Lasting Legacy

SPORTS Home-Field Advantage

Residents of Henle Village were charged for the vandalism and theft of four communal chairs. A5

Obama’s hallmark legislation will likely survive President-elect Donald Trump’s term. A3

Published Tuesdays and Fridays

The MLB has finally gotten rid of the connection between the AllStar Game and the World Series. A10

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