Mount Vernon Bus

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The ads are part of a campaign by the historical site Mount Vernon

Its bus campaign started around Inauguration Day

Washington CNN  — 

The people at Mount Vernon argue their hashtag commemorating George Washington – #MadeAmericaGreat – is not offering any judgment on Donald Trump, whose catchphrase is Make America Great Again.

You can see the remnants of a Mount Vernon marketing campaign on the streets of Washington, where drivers might notice a bus with the phrase “#MadeAmericaGreat” plastered on the side, along with the words “George Washington’s Mount Vernon.”.

It’s all part of an advertising campaign by the historical site Mount Vernon, the former estate of the country’s first president, George Washington.

“It was a very timely and topical tagline,” said Rebecca Aloisi, vice president for marketing at Mount Vernon, noting that the bus campaign started around Inauguration Day as a way to connect with people coming to DC, but was in response to the site’s “Campaign 2016” social media initiative.

“George Washington: I made America great,” states one tweet posted on July 23 from the official Mount Vernon Twitter account.

Mount Vernon’s “Campaign 2016” ads involved videos of an actor playing Washington answering a series of debate questions, and campaign-inspired merchandise (that’s no longer available).

Aloisi said the “Made America Great” campaign is not a nod for or against Trump, as Mount Vernon is “apolitical” just like Washington himself, who was around before his successors split the country into factions with partisan politics.

“We have seen growing interest in our country’s founding and other topics related to the government and the precedents that George Washington set,” Aloisi said in an email. “We hope that people will come to Mount Vernon in person or explore our website to learn more and find some inspiration.”

Mount Vernon looks for “innovative and compelling ways to tell the story of George Washington,” and has an average of one million visitors each year, its website reads.

“We really do think he made America great,” Aloisi said.