Posted on 04/25/2014 8:09:29 AM PDT by SunkenCiv
Lawmakers are rallying around the 150-year-old U.S. Capitol Dome, weather-whipped and torn open by acid rain, worried that if an 11th-hour restoration isn’t fully funded, its most important traits could be lost forever.
“If this work isn't done,” warned Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., “we're going to lose the dome, we're going to lose it as it truly, historically is.”
A big fix, added Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., is needed, “so that we don't lose these treasures forever.”
The two Senate appropriators are joining to help Architect of the Capitol Stephen T. Ayers secure the money needed to complete the $60 million restoration projection, set to go into final stages next month with the erection of scaffolding to surround the whole dome, just like that done recently at the Washington Monument.
The interior is also in need of restoration, and the Capitol Rotunda is temporarily closed as interior safety netting is installed to begin that $21 million project.
Pockmarked with about 300 cracks and broken stone about a dozen years ago, there are now 1,300 cracks in the dome’s exterior covered with a dozen layers of lead-based paint that allow water to seep in and stain the interior. Some stone carvings are so damaged that it’s hard to make them out...
Congress is expected to fund the project, one of over 20 emergency fixes on the Capitol campus, and Ayers said it should be done in time for the next presidential Inauguration in January 2017.
The House has moved forward with funding, and the Senate is expected to follow in May. One insider suggested that members would rather spend less on it, but realize that restoring a piece of American history can’t be skimped on.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonexaminer.com ...
When they are in or out of session?
They’ve done far greater damage, actively or neglectfully, to the Constitution.
During little bastard boy’s 2015 State of the Union address of course.
How much did they spend on obamacare web programming?
How much did they spend on obamacare advertising?
Sixty million to fix the dome? Pocket change, rounding error. Pffft.
Surprised we haven’t torn it down already to construct a new “3M-Sprint Congressional Stadium” with deluxe skyboxes.
Tradition is dead in this country.
“Torn open by acid rain”? Maybe living in Washington DC is more like living on Venus than I thought.
I took my family to DC in March and we visited the Capitol. The rotunda is absolutely beautiful. You could spend a full day in there. Amazing history.
Sell off some treasures from the Smithsonian. A lot of it is pop-culture fandom prop storage anyway, not artifacts of American history.
I think they should replace/rebuild it with all that ammo they’ve been buying. Makes sense both fiscally and symbolically.
Are the homeless scarred by acid rainstorms then?
The odds are higher for him getting struck by lightning on the golf course.
I thought all the punishment of business back during Clinton solved the acid rain problem, I haven’t heard much anti-business cries using ‘acid rain’ in decades.
“... there are now 1,300 cracks in the dome’s exterior ...”
-
I read the news today, oh, boy.
Four thousand holes in Blackburn, Lancashire.
And though the holes were rather small,
they had to count them all.
Now they know how many holes it takes to fill the Albert Hall.
MEGA DITTOS TO THAT!These A$$H*LES have put us all in debt over 17-TRILLIONS and they can’t take care of the”Den Of Thieves”they all”WORK”In??????????????????????????
Sure is a loaded family name this architect has.
I almost forgot?The Capitol Dome Doesn’t VOTE!!!!!!!!!!!!!
yes ....there is distinct possibility of that given the amount of time he spends playing golf.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.