The Trump administration is reportedly moving forward with plans to install signs outside the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History that would call out the museum’s leadership over accusations of ideological bias.
According to a Tuesday report from The Atlantic, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum laid out the plans in a September 3 letter to Sens. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, who had requested details after President Donald Trump ordered the signage through a July executive order. The Atlantic’s Kelsey Ables wrote that “Donald Trump has not forgotten his midsummer promise to publicly shame the Smithsonian.”
The National Park Service is expected to put up roughly a dozen temporary signs outside the museum, at an estimated cost of $84,000, the outlet reported. While the exact wording hasn’t been finalized, Burgum’s letter states the signs will give visitors “important context about the exhibits they are about to encounter and the personal viewpoints that the curators of the exhibits are seeking to advance.”
Burgum went further in the letter, arguing that the museum promotes “ideologies that distract from a coherent and accurate presentation of America’s story.” He added, “This may be the first instance in which executive branch intervention of this nature has become necessary.”
The letter reportedly takes direct aim at museum director Anthea Hartig and outgoing Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch, citing past remarks they’ve made about race and how American history is presented. “A commitment to public transparency means that visitors should be informed about Director Hartig’s and other Smithsonian leaders’ history of racial focus,” Burgum wrote.
He didn’t stop there, adding that visitors should also be made aware of “Secretary Lonnie Bunch’s history of invidious discrimination and anti-white animus.” Burgum pointed to a 2000 essay in which Bunch wrote about racial discrimination within the museum profession as evidence for that claim.
Beyond leadership, the administration also flagged specific museum materials for scrutiny, singling out content involving transgender Americans as well as the terminology used to describe undocumented immigrants.
This isn’t the first time Trump has taken aim at the Smithsonian. Back in August of 2025, the president blasted the institution on Truth Social, writing in part, “The Smithsonian is OUT OF CONTROL, where everything discussed is how horrible our Country is, how bad Slavery was, and how unaccomplished the downtrodden have been.”
The planned signage represents the latest step in what appears to be a sustained effort by the administration to reshape how the Smithsonian presents American history, following through on the president’s July executive order and his earlier public criticism of the institution. With the National Park Service reportedly tasked with installation and a price tag already attached to the project, the plan appears to be moving from rhetoric toward reality, even as the exact language visitors will see remains undetermined.
