Senator Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, has broken with the majority of her Republican colleagues regarding a directive from President Donald Trump to place warning signs outside the Smithsonian Institution. Trump's executive order, signed late last month, aims to "restore trust in the Smithsonian Institution" by addressing what he described as politicized exhibits that emphasize activism over history.
Murkowski, along with Senator Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., sent a bipartisan letter to the Trump administration expressing concern and requesting more information about the executive order. The senators, who chair and rank the Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee, asked about the Department of the Interior's role in implementing Executive Order 14416, "Restoring Trust in the Smithsonian Institution."
"For the past 180 years, the Smithsonian Institution has been committed to sharing objective historical evidence through research and education, not political narratives," Murkowski and Merkley stated in their letter to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum. They added, "The Smithsonian Institution has worked tirelessly to present a comprehensive narrative of our nation’s amazing history, from its many triumphs to its trials. There is nothing more American than telling our story truthfully."
President Donald Trump's directive orders Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to utilize existing avenues to install "temporary exhibits or signage on [federally owned] sidewalks, walkways, and land used by the public that corrects inaccurate information presented in the Museum."
Republicans have increasingly scrutinized the Smithsonian, which receives approximately $1 billion annually in federal funding, arguing that some exhibits are inherently political. Examples cited include an exhibit that characterized Disney's "Steamboat Willie" as containing "vestiges of long-standing traditions of blackface minstrelsy," and broader accusations that the museum's curation is "anti-white" and "woke."
Murkowski and Merkley are seeking clarification on whether there is a precedent for federal land or funds being used to communicate "conflicting information" to a nearby entity's operations. They also asked who is compiling the information for the signage, as well as the timeline and cost associated with the initiative.
Some conservatives in the House Appropriations Committee have indicated they would support new restrictions on the Smithsonian's federal funding to compel changes in controversial exhibits, or risk losing government financial support.