Flag in rags at national cemetery

Speaking to the American Legion on Tuesday, President Bush referred to the flag as “a symbol of a noble nation and of a higher calling,” and drew applause when he called on elected officials to protect the flag with a constitutional amendment.

He might start, however, by instructing the federal bureaucrats under his charge to pay more attention to flags right here in the District.

The flag flying in the middle of Battleground National Cemetery on Georgia Avenue is dirty, tattered and hanging from only one ring of the pole, which itself is in need of repair.

It has been like that for some time, according to our tipster.

One of the oldest federal cemeteries, Battleground was established to inter 41 Union soldiers who died in the Battle of Fort Stevens in 1864, when a band of Confederates tried to attack Washington. Also near the entrance of the 1-acre park are monuments commemorating units from New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio that fought in the engagement.

Ironically, a plaque on-site reproduces the language of an 1867 law against defacing or disrespecting a national cemetery.

The park superintendent of Rock Creek Park, which oversees the cemetery, did not return a phone message.

With all the trouble over how wounded soldiers are treated at Walter Reed, it appears that dead soldiers aren’t treated very well, either.

Bob Dole a busy guy once again

If anyone wondered what retired Senate leaders do, they now have an answer thanks to Howard Baker Jr., Tom Daschle, Bob Dole and George Mitchell: They form think tanks.

The four statesmen got together on the Hill Tuesday to launch the Bipartisan Policy Center. According to Daschle, the BPC will serve as “an incubator for public policy and a creative forum for creative ideas.”

Dole hopes their recommendations will be well-received because “when you get out of politics, your numbers go up and you get more credibility.”

Yet Daschle admitted that on their issues, namely national security, energy and agriculture, “There’s no guarantee that these issues are going to be resolved. I don’t consider it a failure if we can’t reach a consensus.”

Dole also discussed his appointment by the president Tuesday to lead an investigation into veterans’ care.

“I was surprised” about the discoveries at Walter Reed, he said. “I never go to Building 18. I didn’t know where it was. … Somebody goofed. That’s pretty obvious.”

Questions and ANSWERs

Cindy Sheehan and other supporters of the anti-war movement gathered Tuesday at the National Press Club to discuss their plans for a march on the Pentagon on March 17, organized by the ANSWER Coalition.

Mara Verheyden-Hilliard of Partnership for Civil Justice insisted that the march — to be held on the 40th anniversary of the Pentagon protest during the Vietnam War — will be very safe and that all necessary permits have been acquired. In fact, she said, she plans on bringing her 2-year-old child.

Mahdi Bray, the executive director of the Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation said, “We’ve got politicians on Capitol Hill that got more games than Toys ‘R’ Us.”

The Rev. Lennox Yearwood of the Hip Hop Caucus added, “I don’t know how the president sleeps at night. I don’t know how the vice president sleeps at night. As a matter of fact, I don’t know how Nancy Pelosi and [John] Murtha sleep at night.”

Hilton’s problems not limited to mice?

After we ran our item last week on mice being spotted in the main ballroom of the Hilton Washington during a major press dinner, the D.C. Department of Health got back to us regarding the hotel’s food inspection record.

Turns out the main banquet kitchen was closed for violations four times between 2000 and 2004, after falling short of the 88-point threshold (out of 100) to pass inspections.

Since then, the city has scrapped the 100-point scale. According to a Department of Health spokeswoman, the most recent inspection was passed only “after several problems were corrected on-site.”

“The problems included improper temperature in the dishwasher and areas that were dirty,” she said.

Still on the spring schedule for the hotel to host are the Radio and TV Correspondents’ Dinner and the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.

By the numbers

4: Minutes it took the presidential motorcade to travel from the White House to the Renaissance Hotel for the president’s address to the American Legion on Tuesday

50: Miles per hour reached by the motorcade