“During the federal government shutdown, the White House Visitor Center and National Christmas Tree site will be closed,” the National Park Service wrote on its website. “Restroom facilities will be closed.”
The tree, a massive Colorado blue spruce, was damaged Friday when a man in “emotional distress” tried to climb it, a park service spokesperson told The Hill. The shutdown has “complicated” repairs that would allow for the lights to be turned back on.
There was a flicker of hope that might happen. The National Park Foundation, a charity that supports the park service, was providing materials and labor to get the lights working, a park service spokeswoman told WTOP. The lights flickered on and off Sunday as workers assessed the damage.
RELATED: 2018 White House Christmas decorations
WASHINGTON, DC – NOVEMBER 26: Holiday decorations celebrating the ‘country’s national symbols, including the bald eagle, the rose, and the oak tree’ are on display in the State Dining Room at the White House November 26, 2018 in Washington, DC. The 2018 theme of the White House holiday decorations is ‘American Treasures,’ and features patriotic displays highlighting the country’s ‘unique heritage.’ The White House expects to host 100 open houses and more than 30,000 guests who will tour the topiary trees, architectural models of major U.S. cities, the Gold Star family tree and national monuments in gingerbread. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC – NOVEMBER 26: Gingerbread buildings from the National Mall, including the Capitol, the Lincoln Memorial, the Jefferson Memorial, the Washington Monument, and the White House are on display in the State Dining Room at the White House November 26, 2018 in Washington, DC. The 2018 theme of the White House holiday decorations is ‘American Treasures,’ and features patriotic displays highlighting the country’s ‘unique heritage.’ The White House expects to host 100 open houses and more than 30,000 guests who will tour the topiary trees, architectural models of major U.S. cities, the Gold Star family tree and national monuments in gingerbread. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC – NOVEMBER 26: Holiday decorations celebrating the ‘country’s national symbols, including the bald eagle, the rose, and the oak tree’ are on display in the State Dining Room at the White House November 26, 2018 in Washington, DC. The 2018 theme of the White House holiday decorations is ‘American Treasures,’ and features patriotic displays highlighting the country’s ‘unique heritage.’ The White House expects to host 100 open houses and more than 30,000 guests who will tour the topiary trees, architectural models of major U.S. cities, the Gold Star family tree and national monuments in gingerbread. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
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The darkened tree, located on the Ellipse near the White House, adds a grinch-like note to the standoff between President Donald Trump and Congress over his demand for a $5 billion border wall. Trump’s acting chief of staff, Mick Mulvaney, warned the shutdown could stretch into January.
President Calvin Coolidge began the National Christmas Tree tradition in 1923, when he lit a tree with 2,500 bulbs in red, white and blue, according to the park service.
Ninety-five years later, the prospects appear dim that the tree will be relighted in time for Christmas.
