Photo by ianseanlivingston.

If the Federal government had shut down, monuments such as the Lincoln Memorial would have been shuttered. To clear up any confusion, President Obama visited the Lincoln yesterday afternoon to assure visitors that yes, indeed, the National Mall, its monuments and museums, are indeed open.

While there, Obama shook hands with visitors and told them that the memorial remained open because Congress had made compromises to settle the budget.

He then remarked, “This is what America is all about, everybody from different places enjoying those things that bind us together.”