(wm) Somehow the current US President, Donald Trump, must have made a mistake when he tried to implement his saying “America first!” for his own countrymen. The regular visitors, employees and visitor of the National Museum were “not amused” when their president took the decision to take responsibility for creating the longest “shutdown” in the history of the country. Luckily, after a period of many weeks in which the museum was closed, signs could be put up with the text “We are happy to welcome you back as visitors,”. The posters were put op on 29 January 29, 2019, the day the museum doors were opened again.
For many weeks, the well-known and highly appreciated institution had been closed, staff salaries and other expenses had not been paid, because the President and the House of Representatives were clinching political issues. Whether things will change forever remains to be seen; a further “shutdown” cannot be ruled out in the absence of agreement between the politicians. Philatelists can now visit the famous collections again – at least for the time being – and the Bill Gross Gallery is also open again.
