alternative hippopotamus

progressive cyberdadaism from our nation’s capital

December 12, 2007

Bush and the Mall

by AltHippo @ 6:31 pm. Filed under Life in D.C., Bush

I was going through some documents trying to figure out if the National Park Service ever plans to repave the asphalt surface around the Lincoln Memorial. There are sections on the Tidal Basin side that turn out to pretty good for skateboarding. The path that goes past the Korean War Memorial is even pretty good. The paths around the pond on the northern side, however, are in poor condition, and unusable for skating or skateboarding.

Long story short: I haven’t figured out the repaving schedule. But I did run across this stirring passage on the symbolism of the Mall and environs: (National Park Service, Cultural Landscape Inventory)

The national significance of the Mall cannot be overstated. The central landscape itself, as
defined for this inventory, constitutes the fundamental feature of the Mall, clarifying the vista and
thus the symbolic relation between the Capitol and the Washington Monument, representing the
legislative and executive branches of government (since the Washington Monument stands on
axis with the White House) – the primary design intent of both the L’Enfant and the McMillan
Plans. The Mall is therefore a symbol of American democracy.

Which raised an interesting question: Has George W. Bush visited the Mall? You can find articles about his father visiting the World War II Memorial, or his wife visiting the Museum of the American Indian. How about George? I can’t find any article affirming that he has paid an official or unofficial visit since the insurrection of November 2000.

Could this be for the same reason that Damien can’t enter a church?

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