President Donald Trump has issued an executive order mandating content warning signs be placed outside the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History (NMAH) to restore trust in the institution.
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ABC News reports that the executive action orders new “temporary exhibits or signage” be installed outside the National Museum of American History (NMAH), “warning” visitors about “the Ideological Capture” of the museum.
The “Restoring Trust In the Smithsonian Institution” order follows the release of a report by the White House Domestic Policy Council documenting dozens of examples of the museum and its leaders presenting “a radical view of American history.”
In the last decade, Americans have witnessed a concerted effort to rewrite our history and force a factually baseless ideology that discredits American heroes.
The Report shows Smithsonian leadership shifted the mission from celebrating our shared heritage to extreme political… pic.twitter.com/IP5ix1GvIz
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) July 26, 2026
The report, released earlier this month, shows Smithsonian leaders don’t view American history as a shared national inheritance to be taught and celebrated, but rather as a “prime tool” to advance ideas of social justice and the radical transformation of our society.
According to the White House press release, that report’s findings also overwhelmingly demonstrate that current leadership of both the Smithsonian Institution and the Museum “cannot be trusted to tell America’s story with honesty and gratitude.”
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Reuters reports that because the president cannot legally change internal museum exhibits or fire leaders due to the Smithsonian’s independent legal structure, the executive order explicitly utilizes federal jurisdiction over the NPS-maintained walkways outside.
The executive order directs the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director of the National Park Service (NPS) and in coordination with the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy, to install temporary signage along the NPS-maintained sidewalks and walkways used by the public to access the Museum.
Trump’s order states:
Such signage shall notify visitors that the Museum exhibits should be renovated consistent with the findings in the Report and direct visitors to locations and resources for accurate information regarding America’s history.
According to the executive order, the museum had also faced accusations of “failing to appropriately honor the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence during this 250th anniversary year of the founding of our country.”
ABC News reports that NMAH Director Anthea Hartig has insisted that the museum “does not take sides in America’s political debates.”
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