Trump asks Smithsonian to install Washington statues and create special exhibit

President Donald Trump asked the Smithsonian Institution to install two statues of George Washington and create a special exhibit honoring the nation’s first president, according to social media posts made late Friday. He requested that the exhibit begin immediately and continue through Feb. 22, 2032, the 300th anniversary of Washington’s birth.

For Constitution Day on Sept. 17, Trump asked the Smithsonian to place an 11-foot Washington statue featured at the recent Freedom 250 IndyCar race in the Flag Hall of the National Museum of American History. He also proposed replacing “Infinity,” a sculpture by New York artist Jose de Rivera that was commissioned by the federal government and installed in 1967, with a 30-foot statue of Washington.

Trump described Washington on Truth Social as “easily America’s Greatest Hero” while traveling to his golf course in Ireland. He also complained that the museum does not mention Washington’s celebrated crossing of the Delaware River during the Revolutionary War and said it should establish a “Center for American Heroes.”

That proposed center would replace the recently ended Center for Restorative History, a museum initiative intended to spotlight stories excluded from the national historical narrative. Trump’s requests continue his administration’s effort to change how the Smithsonian presents American history, including the treatment of Washington and other founders.

Whether Trump can compel the Smithsonian to make the requested changes remains unclear. The institution operates outside the executive branch, and its leadership is overseen by a Board of Regents that includes Vice President JD Vance, Chief Justice John Roberts, a bipartisan group of lawmakers and private citizens.

In March, Trump issued an executive order targeting funding for Smithsonian programs that advanced what it called “divisive narratives” and “improper ideology.” The White House later published a lengthy report that repeatedly argued the institution had not given sufficient attention to Washington and other founders.