The Difference a Decade Makes

In the summer of 2010, we took a driving vacation to Washington, DC. Walking around our nation’s Capital, we were impressed with the history, and most of all, the accessibility. We walked right up the steps of The Capitol, sat on the wall and watched the sun set over the National Mall. We stood in front of The White House and marveled at the beautiful gardens and landscaping surrounding “The People’s House.”

Fast forward to the fall of 2020 and another driving trip to DC. This time, we were in the middle of a pandemic and needed to get away. We chose Washington because it wasn’t on Connecticut’s list of “naughty” states so we wouldn’t need to quarantine for 14 days when we came home.

This time, The Capitol was fenced off all around like some kind of prison camp. Signs were posted everywhere, warning people to stay out – “Area Closed by order of the United States Capitol Police Board”. Climb the steps to The Capitol? Forget that. There was no access to the steps we had walked up a decade earlier and the visitor parking lot was now off limits and gated.

And the White House? We thought our memory was playing tricks on us. We couldn’t find the road that led us right past the front of “The People’s House” ten years earlier. We finally realized it was blocked off with gates and security guards. So, we walked around the back, hoping to get a little closer. No luck. There is a massive white wall around the entire back perimeter of The White House. In addition to the wall, an iron fence has been constructed in front of that wall!

These pictures tell a sad story of all we as a country have lost in the past four years.

Read more here regarding what the current administration has done to “The People’s House”: https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2020/06/24/white-house-is-peoples-house-something-donald-trump-seems-forget/