The Trump administration detailed plans for a comprehensive review of museums in the Smithsonian Institution in a letter to sent to Lonnie Bunch, the organization's secretary, publicly posted on the White House website on Tuesday.
The letter includes an extensive list of materials specific museums are required to provide to the Trump administration, which includes plans for future exhibitions, job descriptions, budgets, and student resources.
Here are the museums listed for the "first phase" of the review process:
- National Museum of American History
- National Museum of Natural History
- National Museum of African American History and Culture
- National Museum of the American Indian
- National Air and Space Museum
- Smithsonian American Art Museum
- National Portrait Gallery
- Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
The formal letter, as explained in the text, comes after the Smithsonian Institution provided a guided tour of the National Museum of American History and the National Museum of African American History and Culture to select members of the Trump administration.
The letter continued to explain that the comprehensive review is intended to "ensure alignment with the President's directive to celebrate American exceptionalism, remove divisive or partisan narratives, and restore confidence in our shared cultural institutions."
You can read the full letter here.
It's migratory season for billions of animals across the United States. That means millions of birds and butterflies will take a rest stop in Tennessee and Kentucky as they move south for winter. Tennessee state parks are working to create vital habitat for the migrating monarchs. You may be able to follow their lead around your home to help reverse a declining monarch population.
- Lelan Statom
