Overview

• In letters dated Sept. 2 to the White House and Sept. 3 to staff, Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III affirmed authority over programming and said, “Our independence is paramount.”
• Bunch convened a small team to determine what materials to share and on what timetable, and he said the Smithsonian’s review will ensure content is nonpartisan and factual.
• A Smithsonian official told ABC News the Institution will brief the White House after its internal review, which is expected to finish by year’s end, without submitting a formal report.
• White House official Lindsey Halligan said the Smithsonian cannot credibly audit itself and vowed an impartial external audit, citing the share of its funding from taxpayers.
• No exhibit removals have been ordered; USA TODAY found several items targeted by the White House are not currently on view, and visitors and historians voiced concern about political interference.