Zoomed in the picture is a bit fuzzy, but is that Licence Plate dated 1942?

[1941 District of Columbia license plates were good through March 31, 1942. - tterrace]

The construction firm in charge of the site shown here built some of the most famous structures in America, including old Penn Station:

http://harrysblack.com/GeorgeAFullerCompany.html

Having trouble here trying to figure out how a shortage of office space would constitute an emergency.

[Date and place are relevant here. - tterrace]

Geez, come on! One guy is sitting ankle deep in trash, the gutter is filling up...doesn't a construction crew have at least a bucket?

These fellows clearly take pride in being union members. No scabbing on this job. Everyone has their union button prominently displayed. That may have been a factor in politicians of that era remembering that there wasn't only a middle class, but a working class, too, who had a stake in the American Dream.

There seem to be several birds sitting patiently in the tree, waiting their chance at the crumbs. Too bad that the characterless nature of wartime government architecture makes placing this photo more precisely very difficult. The buildings in the background could be anything from the Navy Annex or Henderson Hall to the tempo buildings that persisted on the National Mall until the mid-'60s.