There could be a shutdown again because Republicans in Congress are blocking the government’s new budget. Americans are still recovering from the closures of important facilities during the pandemic.
Now the three most popular residents of Washington will soon be gone, so of course their friends are lining up again. Thursday afternoon at the National Zoo, people crowd in front of the enclosure with the giant pandas. In December the three bears are due to return to China, where the parents come from; their offspring were born in the USA. Farewell celebrations have been going on for days for Mei Xiang, 25, Tian Tian, 26, and Xiao Qi Ji, 3. But perhaps no one will be allowed to watch the giant pandas before they leave – if a few people get serious a few miles away.