Updated @ 9:26 AM EDT on August 3, 2025
After reviewing the exhibit, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C., has taken down any mention of President Trump’s two first-term impeachments.
The “The American Presidency: A Glorious Burden” exhibit mentions the impeachments of Presidents Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton as well as the Watergate affair, which overtook President Richard Nixon, who chose to resign rather than risk impeachment. President Trump’s impeachments in 2019 and 2021, only days before the conclusion of his first term, were given a temporary title in 2021.
However, last month, the mention of Trump’s impeachments was taken out. Following a recent assessment of the museum’s “legacy content,” the Smithsonian said in a statement to NPR that it had chosen to remove the mention of Trump’s impeachments from the show, which had been there since September 2021, while a more thorough redesign of the exhibit was being planned.
“Because the other topics in this section had not been updated since 2008, the decision was made to restore theImpeachmentcase back to its 2008 appearance,” added the statement. According to the Smithsonian, the designation for Trump’s impeachments was “intended to be a short-term measure to address current events at the time, but the label remained in place until July 2025.”
“It takes a lot of time and money to refresh and refurbish a big permanent exhibition like The American Presidency, which debuted in 2000. “All impeachments will be included in a future and updated exhibit,” the statement stated, but it did not specify when the exhibit would be updated.
The Smithsonian claimed in a follow-up statement on Saturday that no one in the Trump administration put any pressure on it to make the adjustment. “We were not asked by any Administration or other government official to remove content from the exhibit,” the statement continued.
The plaque mentioning Trump’s impeachments was intended to be a temporary addition to the display, according to the Smithsonian, but it failed to live up to the museum’s standards, was “consistent with other sections in the exhibit,” and obscured other items in the same instance.
“The section in question, Impeachment, will be updated in the coming weeks to reflect all impeachment proceedings in our nation’s history,” said the statement.
Following an altercation between the White House and Kim Sajet, director of the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery, the designation was removed last month. In late May, Trump made an attempt to fire Sajet, describing her as “a highly partisan person, and a strong supporter of DEI.” On June 9, Smithsonian issued a statement in response, restating its position as a “independent entity” that functions “free from political or partisan influence.”
In order to guarantee that content stays objective, the Smithsonian’s Board of Regents stated that going ahead, museum directors and employees will be given “specific expectations” for content as well as “reasonable time” to make any required adjustments. Later, Sajet quit.
“Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History,” an executive order issued by the president in March, stated that it was intended to combat “a concerted and widespread effort to rewrite our Nation’s history, replacing objective facts with a distorted narrative driven by ideology rather than truth.”
The Smithsonian Institution was specifically mentioned, and he stated that the administration will try “to remove improper ideology from such properties.”
“Unfortunately, the Smithsonian museums have highlighted divisive, DEI exhibits which are out of touch with mainstream America for far too long,” White House Spokesperson Davis Ingle stated in an email to NPR.
“We wholeheartedly endorse modernizing displays to showcase the magnificence of America. He declared, “The Trump administration will keep working to make sure that the Smithsonian gets rid of all wrong ideologies and once again brings all Americans together and makes them proud of our wonderful history.”
Joe Hernandez of NPR helped with this article.
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