The Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History removed references to President Donald Trump in an exhibit about impeachments last month, after undergoing an internal review for “political or partisan influence.”
In September 2021, the museum added a temporary label including content about Trump’s impeachments to a display that had not been otherwise updated since 2008. The 2021 addition was intended to be a “short-term measure” to address “current events” at the time. A museum spokesperson confirmed to the Washington Examiner on Friday that museum staff recently reverted the impeachment section of the exhibition back to the 2008 version to match the status of the rest of the display. A future and updated exhibit “will include all impeachments,” the spokesperson said.
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“In reviewing our legacy content recently, it became clear that the ‘Limits of Presidential Power’ section in The American Presidency: A Glorious Burden exhibition needed to be addressed,” the Smithsonian spokesperson said. “The section of this exhibition covers Congress, The Supreme Court, Impeachment, and Public Opinion. Because the other topics in this section had not been updated since 2008, the decision was made to restore the Impeachment case back to its 2008 appearance.”
“A large permanent gallery like The American Presidency that opened in 2000, requires a significant amount of time and funding to update and renew,” the spokesperson continued. “A future and updated exhibit will include all impeachments.”
The museum’s move sparked instant backlash from Democrats, including Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA), who led impeachment efforts against Trump as a lawmaker in the lower chamber in 2019 and 2021. Both attempts ended in a House impeachment against Trump, although the Senate voted to acquit the president.
Schiff posted images of newspaper headlines detailing Trump’s impeachments to social media, writing, “This is what Donald Trump wants you to forget. America never will.”
The Washington Examiner reached out to House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA), who head the committees that play key roles in impeachments, for comment regarding the removal of the exhibit.
The changes follow the museum’s commitment in June to undergo an “assessment” investigating concerns that progressive ideology had made its way into one of the country’s most revered cultural institutions.
“While the vast majority of our content is rooted in meticulous research and thoughtful analysis of history and facts, we recognize that, on occasion, some of our work has not aligned with our institutional values of scholarship, even-handedness, and nonpartisanship,” Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III, who heads the Smithsonian Institution, wrote in an email to staff.
“For that, we must all work to do better,” the email, obtained by the Washington Post, continues. “As directed by the Board of Regents, we will undertake an assessment of the Institution, evaluating the need for any changes to policies, procedures, or personnel, and I will share our findings and recommendations with the Board. As always, we thank the President and Congress for their steady commitment to the Smithsonian and to preserving it for our visitors and our country.”
The Smithsonian’s pledge followed an executive order signed by President Donald Trump in late March that alleged cultural institutions such as the Smithsonian Institution, which receives roughly $1 billion in federal funding annually, have become overrun with left-wing ideology rather than a factual rendering of historical narratives.
Trump used the executive order to appoint Vice President JD Vance, who is a member of the Smithsonian Board of Regents, to lead an effort to eliminate “improper, divisive, or anti-American ideology” from the Smithsonian Institution, which is credited as the world’s largest museum, education, and research complex.
The Trump administration applauded the Smithsonian Institution’s latest move to make changes by altering its impeachment exhibit in a statement to the Washington Examiner on Friday.
“Unfortunately, for far too long, the Smithsonian museums have highlighted divisive, DEI exhibits which are out of touch with mainstream America,” White House spokesman Davis Ingle said. “We are fully supportive of updating displays to highlight American greatness. The Trump administration will continue working to ensure that the Smithsonian removes all improper ideology and once again unites and instills pride in all Americans regarding our great history.”
TRUMP’S CULTURE WAR OFFENSIVE IS WORKING
Besides Trump, Presidents Andrew Johnson, Richard Nixon, and Bill Clinton are the only White House occupants who have faced impeachment. All except Nixon were impeached by the House before surviving conviction trials in the Senate. Nixon resigned from office before the House could impeach him.
Trump is the only president to be twice impeached by the House.