Smithsonian Removes Reference to Trump’s Impeachments, but Says It Will Return

This month, the National Museum of American History of the Smithsonian abolished a label referring to the two dismissal of President Trump, said that museum officials were part of an examination of the institution in terms of bias.

The temporary label was added in 2021 to an exhibition on the American presidency. The label also included information on the dismissal of former presidents Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton, as well as on former president Richard Mr. Nixon, who faced a possible accusation before resigning.

Trump is the only American president to have been charged twice, in 2019 and again in 2021. He was acquitted twice after having faced trials in the Senate.

The removal of the label, which was reported earlier by the Washington Post, intervened after the Smithsonian Board of Regents, which governs the institution, recently undertook to examine its pressure content from the Trump administration. Trump called for a more positive framing in the history of the country in the museums of the Smithsonian and tried to dismiss the director of the National Portrait Gallery, accusing him of being political.

The label was part of an exhibition entitled “The American presidency: a glorious burden”, which opened its doors in 2000 but has not been considerably updated since 2008. The museum removed the temporary label until a more complete update could be undertaken, said the Smithsonian.

“By examining our content inherited recently, it has become clear that the section” limits of presidential power “in” the American presidency: a glorious burden‘ The exhibition was to be discussed, “said Linda St. Thomas, spokesperson for the Smithsonian, in a statement.” The section of this exhibition covers the Congress, the Supreme Court, the indictment and public opinion. Because the other subjects in this section had not been updated since 2008, the decision was taken to restore the accusation case in 2008.

The references to the two Trump dismissal would be included in the exhibition at the time of the Fuller update, said Ms. Thomas. She did not say when this addition would take place, but noted in the press release that a permanent gallery like that of the American presidency would require “significant time and funding to update and renew”.

“A future and update exhibition will include all the dismissal,” she said.

The Smithsonian was closely examined by Mr. Trump, who published a decree in March, affirming that the country had “witnessed a concerted and widespread effort to rewrite the history of our nation” by the institution. He argued that the Smithsonian had “been part of the influence of a divider ideology and centered on the breed”.

In order, he called the Vice-President JD Vance, a member of the Smithsonian board of directors, to work with the congress to prohibit spending on exhibitions or programs that “degrade shared American values, divide Americans by race or promote ideologies incompatible with federal law”.

In May, Trump announced on social networks that he was linking the director of the National Portrait Gallery, Kim Sonjet, accusing him of being a supporter and of supporting the programs of diversity, equity and inclusion. His power to do so was disputed by the Smithsonian. He then resigned, claiming that her decision was in the best interest of the institution.

The Smithsonian in January closed his diversity office after Mr. Trump signed a decree prohibiting diversity programs in the institutions funded by the federal government. The National Gallery of Art has changed its mission statement, replacing the words “diversity, equity, access and inclusion” by “welcoming and accessible”.

After Mr. Trump attempted to dismiss hisjet, the Smithsonian board of directors published a resolution asserting his independence with staff decisions. But the resolution also agreed to consult the content of the exhibition for biases.

This month, the artist Amy Sherald withdrew a next show at the National Portrait Gallery, saying that she believed that the museum was planning to suppress his painting representing a transgender statue of freedom-an effort, she added, intended to avoid provoking Mr. Trump. Ms. Sherald had become famous with her 2018 Portrait of Michelle Obama.

The Smithsonian, the largest museum in the world, the education and research complex, includes museums, libraries and the national zoo.