August 23 2025, 08:15 
According to the White House, “President Trump Is Right About the Smithsonian.”
That’s the title of an “article” the administration published on Thursday that aims to prove Washington’s federally-funded Smithsonian museums are the last redoubt of “woke” in the nation’s Capital (because the president says they are).
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In classic Trump fashion, the roundup of programs, exhibitions, and ephemera mentioned in the article is long on right-wing trigger words and far short on context; “transgender”, “LGBTQ+”, and “diversity” figure prominently in the list of offending museum offerings.
And a “list” is really all the White House’s article is. It’s presented for the most part without comment, as though the mere existence of the 22 examples proves Trump’s point that the Smithsonian is a hotbed of cultural sedition.
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It’s like a weak, online-only version of Hitler’s infamous Degenerate Art show in 1930’s Germany, but without a connoisseur like Hermann Göring swooping up the inventory.
Instead, the administration’s walkthrough comes off as if some government hacks were desperate to find evidence to satisfy their vulgar boss, because he’s still resentful he was never welcomed by New York’s museum crowd, and has likely never visited the Met — let alone a Smithsonian museum — just for the art and history.
Much of the document isn’t even based on the administration’s own advertised due diligence regarding museum exhibitions and supporting materials, instead relying on a published report by the far-right Federalist Society detailing “Wall-To-Wall Anti-American Propaganda” at Smithsonian museums (including exhibits “Promoting Homosexuality”), as well as social media posts flagging “objectionable” museum offerings.
Examples, linked to several of their right-wing echo chamber sources, include:
- “The American History Museum prominently displays the ‘Intersex-Inclusive Progress Pride flag’ at its entrance, which was also flown alongside the American flag at multiple Smithsonian campuses.”
- “The American History Museum’s ‘LGBTQ+ History’ exhibit… includes articles on “LGBTQ+ inclusion and skateboarding“ and “the rise of drag ball culture in the 1920s.”
- “The American History Museum’s exhibit marking the 50th anniversary of Title IX includes biological men competing in women’s sports and argues in favor of ‘transgender’ athletes competing in sports against the opposite biological sex.”
- “The National Portrait Gallery was set to feature a ‘painting depicting a transgender Statue of Liberty’ before the artist withdrew it.”
The list also goes after examples of diversity, in both race and viewpoints, that are at odds with Trump’s. His whitewashed version of American history was on display earlier this week in his post to Truth Social criticizing the Smithsonian for discussing “how bad Slavery was.”
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Examples of other exhibits not in line with Trump’s version of American history:
- “A exhibit [sic] at the American History Museum depicts migrants watching Independence Day fireworks ‘through an opening in the U.S.-Mexico border wall’ and says America’s founders ‘feared non-White immigration.'”
- “The American History Museum’s ‘American Democracy’ exhibit claims voter integrity measures are ‘attempts to minimize the political power’ of ‘new and diverse groups of Americans.'”
- “The Museum of American Art uses American sculpture ‘to invite dialogue and reflection on notions of power and identity.'”
In that same Truth Social post slamming attention to American slavery, Trump declared the Smithsonian “OUT OF CONTROL.”
A more accurate description would be “out of his control,” in a place where he and his attendants are clearly out of their depth.
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