Sanders, an independent U.S. Senator from Vermont, had been Christmas shopping. He was appalled to see statutettes of George Washington, an ardent protectionist, made in some Shenzhen sweatshop in China. Sanders wrote the museum that it was "pathetic." He added that he hadn't realized the collapse of our manufacturing base had gone that far.
Now, reports the LA Times,
He says he's extracted a commitment from Smithsonian Institution officials to begin selling more USA products within 90 days.Thanks to Bernie, the Smithsonian says it will open a new shop called The Price of Freedom, which will sell only American-made products.
Or else, Sanders says, he's prepared to introduce legislation to force such a policy on the vast conglomerate of 19 museums and nine research centers with some 30 million visits annually and gift shop/catalog sales above $40 million.
Typically, Smithsonian officials had said US-made products were too expensive and hard to find. But ABC News managed to find a thriving shop near the museum that sells only products made in America. Reports ABC,
...any tourist can find domestically-produced gifts at a thriving shop called Appalachian Spring a few blocks away.We're glad the Smithsonian is clear on the concept now.
Proprietor David Brooks has been in business for 43 years. He sells only American-made products and his goods help employ some 400 crafts people.
Brooks says that if the Smithsonian museums sold work by American craftsmen, they could create work for thousands of people.
