Overview
- An August 28 letter from Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and White House domestic policy director Vince Haley told federal agencies they "cannot in good conscience continue to support the Smithsonian under current leadership" and urged them to consider stopping artifact loans, procurement help, and discretionary grants.
- The letter alleges the Smithsonian may have violated federal anti‑discrimination laws through its diversity practices and asked the institution's board of regents to meet with administration officials to discuss findings.
- If agencies follow the advice, practical effects could include canceled loans, slower procurement for shows and research, and lost grant funding, though reporters say widespread cuts or a full halt to cooperation have not yet been carried out.
- Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch has rejected the White House's characterizations as unfair, while historians and civil‑rights groups have denounced the campaign for politicizing scholarship and risking erasure of marginalized histories.
- The move builds on a broader White House effort since 2025 to reshape federal museums; the Smithsonian is a statutorily independent public trust that receives most of its budget from the government and faces governance strain as regents' seats have gone unfilled.