Smithsonian asserts its autonomy from Trump

Julian Raven's portrait of Donald Trump

(Image credit: Mandel Ngan / AFP via Getty Images)

published 10 June 2025

What happened

The Smithsonian's Board of Regents Monday night affirmed the authority of its secretary, Lonnie Bunch III, to make "all personnel decisions" at the national museums institution, 10 days after President Donald Trump said he had fired National Portrait Gallery Director Kim Sajet.

The Smithsonian's statement "did not directly mention the high-stakes standoff" between the White House and Sajet, "who has still been reporting to work," The Washington Post said. The Smithsonian's initial "silence" on Sajet's status "appeared to signal a reluctance to challenge the president," The New York Times said, but the board's actions Monday were a "clear effort by the institution to reassert its autonomy" in an administration where Trump has "made a concerted effort to exert influence over cultural matters in Washington," including installing himself as chair of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

A "major difference between the Kennedy Center and the Smithsonian" is that the president appoints the former's board members while the Smithsonian's board "consists of officials representing all three branches of government," the Los Angeles Times said. Trump "did not cite any legal authority for removing Sajet," the Post said, but he called her "highly partisan and a strong supporter of DEI," and the White House offered 17 examples, including her rejection of Julian Raven's Trump portrait as "too political."

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The regents, who include Vice President J.D. Vance and Chief Justice John Roberts, said they were instructing Bunch to "articulate specific expectations to museum directors" on ensuring "unbiased content" and to "give directors reasonable time to make any needed changes." Monday's statement was "an interim measure and does not rule out potential personnel actions," a Smithsonian spokesperson said.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.