WASHINGTON: The Smithsonian's National Museum of American History removed a label referencing Donald Trump's two impeachments last month following pressure from the White House, The Washington Post reported.
Trump is the only American president to have been impeached twice -- first in 2019 for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, then in 2021 for inciting an insurrection. He was acquitted by the Senate both times.
The label referencing his impeachments was introduced in 2021 to an exhibition about the American presidency at the Smithsonian, according to The Washington Post.
The removal of the label “came about as part of a content review that the Smithsonian agreed to undertake following pressure from the White House to remove an art museum director,“ the Post wrote, citing a source not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.
The exhibit has reverted to a 2008 label stating that “only three presidents have seriously faced removal” -- referring to Andrew Johnson, Bill Clinton, and Richard Nixon, who resigned in 1974 before he could be impeached.
The Smithsonian later said in a statement that “a future and updated exhibit will include all impeachments,“ the paper reported, without specifying when.
Since starting his second term in January, the Republican president has moved to control major cultural institutions -- slashing arts and humanities funding, and cutting the National Park Service's budget.
In March, Trump signed an executive order to “restore the Smithsonian Institution to its rightful place as a symbol of inspiration and American greatness” and “remove improper ideology.”
The order accused the institution of having “come under the influence of a divisive, race-centered ideology” and argued the shift has promoted narratives that portray American values as “inherently harmful and oppressive.”
In the order, Trump instructed Vice President JD Vance -- who sits on the Smithsonian’s board -- to coordinate with Congress to ban funding for exhibits or programs that “degrade shared American values, divide Americans by race, or promote ideologies inconsistent with Federal law.”
He has also accused Washington’s John F. Kennedy Center of being too “woke,“ fired its board members, and appointed himself chairman. - AFP
