Mastodawn

Nonilex

The #Smithsonian Institution on Tuesday submitted documents to the #Trump administration including digital photographs of labels, placards & other texts on display in its #museums in response to a request from the White House, Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III said in a staff email that was obtained by The Washington Post. 
#extortion #law #art #history #Constitution #FirstAmendment #democracy #censorship #whitewashing #dictatorship #SevenMountainMandate

#law #art #history #museums #FirstAmendment #censorship

The #Trump admin, in a December letter, set Tuesday as the deadline for the institution to submit a trove of materials for the admin’s sweeping content review, which aims to rid the #Smithsonian of what the White House has called “improper ideology.”
 Bunch said in the email that the information covered materials “in several galleries” & that the Smithsonian would “continue to provide responsive information on a rolling basis” to the WH.

#extortion #law #art #history #museums #Constitution #FirstAmendment #democracy #censorship #dictatorship #SevenMountainMandate

…After months of relative quiet on the issue, the #Trump admin threatened in a Dec 18 letter addressed to Bunch to withhold federal funds for the #Smithsonian if it did not comply with a request to submit extensive documentation of its current & upcoming exhibits, wall labels, programming plans for America’s 250th birthday, & other aspects of its operations.

#Trump #extortion #law #art #history #Smithsonian #museums #Constitution #FirstAmendment #democracy #censorship #Revisionism #whitewashing #dictatorship #SevenMountainMandate

“The American people will have no patience” for any museum that is “uncomfortable conveying a *positive view of American history*,” wrote Domestic Policy Council director Vince Haley & White House budget director [#Project2025 architect] #RussVought.

#Trump #law #FirstAmendment

The Dec letter scolded the #Smithsonian for failing to hand over comprehensive materials after an ask earlier in the year, asserting that its initial response “fell far short of what was requested.”
 “Funds apportioned for the Smithsonian Institution are only available for use in a manner consistent with Executive Order 14253 ‘Restoring Truth & Sanity to American History,’ & the fulfillment of the requests set forth in our Aug 12, 2025 letter,” Haley & Vought wrote.

The referenced letter specifically called for a more aggressive review of 8 #Smithsonian #museums.

In an email to staff in Dec, Bunch said the institution planned to send more information to the White House but stressed that “all content, programming, & curatorial decisions are made by the Smithsonian.” In a response to the #Trump admin…, Bunch asked the admin to “please understand that this work has been time consuming, involving many staff & departments throughout the Smithsonian.”

#law #1A

#law #SevenMountainMandate

The Smithsonian’s federal budget is appropriated by #Congress but disbursed by the Office of Management & Budget, which is controlled by the White House. Under #Trump, #OMB has previously withheld congressionally approved funds….

Historically, the #Smithsonian, which is a public-private trust of the US govt and overseen by its board of regents, has operated largely #independently —but Trump has showed a new interest in influencing arts & culture during his 2nd admin.

John Q McDonald Jan 14

@Nonilex “influencing”? … how about “distorting”, “defacing”, “twisting”, “subverting”, “mauling”, “perverting”… just to start with?

Don Hawkins - W7DAH Jan 14

@Nonilex Fook the entire tRump regime for trying to rewrite history. Bunch of racist, nazi pieces of shit.

John Q McDonald Jan 14

@Nonilex Fuck these fascist bastards

Knut 🏳️‍🌈 🇳🇴🧸Jan 14

@Nonilex Then a lot of things are going to be destroyed. Lincoln had PLENTY to say about slavery, and wrote about it often.

D. G. Marshall Jan 14

US history will be a little bit more positive once the Trump/Epstein files are released, and that orange skidmark is locked up.

Annette Licitra Jan 14

I highly doubt that those two are qualified to make judgments on behalf of “the American people.”

Urban Hermit Jan 15

@Nonilex my response to them, "I am uncomfortable with any museum that does not acknowledge the mistakes of the past, that tries to view history through the rosy tint of propaganda. Progress is not made by lying to oneself."

But NOW, "Fuck these guys!". They are not dumb enough to not know this is wrong. But they think we are dumb enough to not know that this is wrong. Fuck these guys, the time for logical explanations is over, time for consequences.

Bigots do not improve with a talking to.

troy_friz_zell Jan 15

Nazis don't get to say what the American people think.

f*cking b*tch club Jan 15

@Nonilex ah yes, the “positive view of American history” that changed labels under portraits of past potuses at the WH, and refused to hang the plaque honoring victims of Jan6th….ah yes, so much positivity.

Guillotine Jones, Flâneur Jan 14

@Nonilex
Gee, did something happen with the Epstein files in December that got the Trump White House's Depends in a bunch?
Was it by any chance the December 19 deadline from Congress to release the files? (A deadline that hasn't been observed.)
Could this be why they've picked a fight with the Smithsonian?

Nicole Parsons Jan 14