President Donald Trump’s latest culture war offensive has a new target: America’s most treasured museums.
In a move that echoes authoritarian regimes’ rewriting of history, the White House is preparing to revamp the Smithsonian Institution’s content and operations to bring it “in alignment” with Trump’s vision of American exceptionalism — a vision that critics warn amounts to whitewashing the past.
The effort, first reported by The Wall Street Journal, is part of preparations for the United States’ Semiquincentennial in 2026. In a letter to Smithsonian leadership, Trump officials Lindsey Halligan, Vince Haley, and Russ Vought outlined plans to “celebrate American exceptionalism, remove divisive or partisan narratives, and restore confidence in our shared cultural institutions.”
The Museums on the Chopping Block
The review will target eight key Smithsonian museums, including:
- The National Museum of American History
- The National Museum of Natural History
- The National Museum of African American History and Culture
- The National Museum of the American Indian
The White House says teams of Trump appointees will soon conduct “observational visits and walk-throughs” to document themes and messaging. The implication is clear: exhibits that confront uncomfortable truths about slavery, racism, or the genocide of Indigenous peoples may be slated for removal or revision.
Erasing What Doesn’t Fit the MAGA Storyline
Trump’s March executive order — the foundation for this Smithsonian overhaul — singled out the American Art Museum’s exhibit “The Shape of Power” as an example of “divisive, race-centered ideology.” The exhibit presented race as a social construct rather than a biological fact, challenging the pseudoscientific racism that has been used to justify centuries of oppression.
For Trump, that’s the problem. The administration wants to root out narratives that it deems “ideologically driven” and replace them with supposedly “unifying” and “historically accurate” ones.
In MAGA terms, “historically accurate” often means sanitized: glossing over the brutality of slavery, portraying westward expansion without acknowledging the massacres of Native peoples, and even rehabilitating the Confederacy. Trump’s own record — from defending Confederate monuments to openly celebrating figures tied to white supremacy — offers a stark preview of what “alignment” might mean.
A Dangerous Precedent
The Smithsonian overhaul is more than a culture war stunt; it’s an attempt to control the national narrative ahead of a milestone birthday for the United States. Critics warn that this politicization of history could set a dangerous precedent, turning museums into tools of propaganda rather than institutions of truth.
As the 250th anniversary of American independence approaches, Trump is making it clear: the story of America will be told his way, or not at all.