and space museum on the national mall. david mattingly at the great smoky mountain national park in tennessee. kate, let's start with you. the smithsonian museum is one of the most popular destinations along the mall. how many people could be turned away this weekend in just d.c., alone, i'm wondering? >> reporter: in just d.c. alone, it would reach into hundreds of thousands honestly. we're on the national mall by the smithsonian museum. i want to bring in linda st. thomas, a spokeswoman with the smithsonian institution. to help us understand that very question. linda, what could a potential shutdown mean for the smithsonian museum and for visitors? >> for the visitors the impact is huge. you can see how crowded the mall is. i talked to a group of 98 kids that were here from north carolina. they came up on a bus. they were visiting washington through saturday. so i'm hoping that maybe the