In a sharp escalation of the Trump administration’s campaign to reshape how American history is presented to the public, former President Donald Trump has issued a new executive order ordering mandatory warning signs to be installed outside the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. The order, formally titled *Restoring Trust in the Smithsonian Institution*, targets exhibits the current administration frames as historically inaccurate, requiring the U.S. Department of the Interior to oversee placement of the signage and direct visitors to alternative sources that the White House deems ideologically aligned with its vision of American history. The order does not specify what those alternative, more accurate sources of historical information would be.
The order follows months of escalating tension between the Trump White House and the world’s largest research and museum complex, the Smithsonian Institution. For months, the administration has repeatedly accused the Smithsonian and other mainstream academic organizations of harboring systemic anti-American bias. Friday’s order specifically criticizes museum leadership for failing to sufficiently honor the United States’ 250th Independence Day celebration, held July 4, by elevating the legacies of the nation’s founders. It goes further, claiming that museum leadership intentionally uses American history as a tool to advance progressive social justice causes and radical societal transformation.
An accompanying official statement from the White House doubles down on these accusations, alleging the institution has veered into extreme political activism rooted in Marxist ideology that works to divide, demoralize and dishearten American citizens. The latest directive comes just days after Smithsonian director Anthea Hartig faced intense questioning from Republican lawmakers during two consecutive congressional hearings, where the institution was broadly accused of being permeated by “woke ideology” that has distorted public exhibits, educational resources and internal planning documents. Earlier this July, the White House Domestic Policy Council released a highly critical report claiming the museum actively erases traditional American heritage.
Democratic leaders with oversight responsibility for the Smithsonian have quickly and forcefully condemned the executive order, framing it as a blatant overreach of executive power driven by partisan ideological goals. “This EO is a clear political overreach, driven by an ideological agenda to rewrite American history,” Congresswoman Melanie Stansbury, ranking member of the House Administration Committee, wrote on social platform X. “Our Smithsonian institutions do not belong to the President, but to the American people and so does our nation’s history.”
This new directive is not the first administration action targeting the Smithsonian. In March, Trump issued an earlier order mandating the institution eliminate what he described as “improper, divisive, or anti-American ideology” from its programming. The broader push to alter the Smithsonian’s approach is part of Trump’s wider administration-wide effort to overhaul American cultural institutions, which he claims have been corrupted by left-wing “woke” ideology. To date, Trump has signed multiple executive orders eliminating diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs across the federal government, a policy shift that has already sparked multiple legal challenges from opponents.
Founded in 1846 and primarily funded by U.S. federal appropriations, the Smithsonian Institution operates 21 museums across Washington D.C., Virginia and New York, including the National Museum of American History, National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian American Art Museum, and the National Zoo, among others. The complex draws between 15 and 30 million free visitors annually. The Smithsonian has not yet issued a public response to requests for comment from the BBC on the latest executive order.