Trump demands 30-foot George Washington statue and new exhibition at Smithsonian museum

Demands for George Washington monuments

President Donald Trump called on the Smithsonian Institution to install two statues of George Washington and host a five-year exhibition dedicated to the first president. In statements posted to Truth Social on Friday, Trump demanded that the National Museum of American History place an 11-foot statue of Washington inside its Flag Hall in time for Constitution Day on 17 September 2026. The 11-foot figure was featured at the recent Freedom 250 IndyCar race in Washington. Trump also directed the institution to erect a 30-foot Colossus statue of Washington outside the building.

The proposed 30-foot statue would replace "Infinity", an abstract sculpture by José de Rivera dedicated in 1967. The Smithsonian describes Rivera's piece as the first modern art work commissioned by the federal government under the Art in Architecture Program for the National Mall. Trump rejected the abstract artwork and argued that Washington should be the visual focal point of the museum grounds.

That strange modernist sculpture tells visitors nothing about America, inspires no one, and honors none of our Great American Heroes.

Clash over museum narratives

Trump requested that the five-year exhibition on the life and legacy of Washington begin immediately and run through 22 February 2032, the 300th anniversary of Washington's birth. The president argued that the Smithsonian devotes excessive space to stories of oppression and slavery while neglecting national triumphs. In his social media posts, Trump stated that current museum exhibits fail to present Washington's crossing of the Delaware River during the Revolutionary War and his victory at Trenton.

Trump proposed replacing the museum's recently ended Center for Restorative History with a new Center for American Heroes. In March 2025, the administration issued a 162-page report accusing the National Museum of American History of extreme political activism and thinly veiled anti-Americanism. The White House followed this in July 2026 by ordering the Department of the Interior to install advisory signs outside the museum warning visitors of historical inaccuracies, though those signs have not yet appeared.

Institutional governance and pushback

The demands follow the announcement that Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III, 73, will retire by the end of the year. Bunch, who led the complex of 21 museums, galleries and the National Zoo, called the administration's accusations unfair. Historians and civil rights advocates said the administration's demands risk distorting the historical record and undermining public acknowledgement of critical phases of United States history.

The Smithsonian Institution has functioned as an independent public-private trust since its creation by Congress in 1846. The White House does not hold direct statutory authority over museum curation. The complex is governed by a Board of Regents that includes Vice President JD Vance, Chief Justice John Roberts, lawmakers from both parties, and citizen members. While the administration lacks direct editorial control, officials have threatened to withhold congressionally appropriated federal funding from the institution.

Broader architectural proposals

The statue demand aligns with other White House efforts to reshape federal aesthetics in Washington toward classical monuments and traditional historical figures. Administration plans include a proposed 250-foot-tall triumphal arch at an entrance to the capital, as well as a National Garden of American Heroes. The White House and the Smithsonian did not provide immediate comments on the statue requests.