{"id":9091,"date":"2026-01-11T22:26:35","date_gmt":"2026-01-11T22:26:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/2026\/01\/11\/reference-to-trumps-impeachments-is-removed-from-the-display-of-his-smithsonian-photo-portrait-ap-news\/"},"modified":"2026-01-11T22:26:35","modified_gmt":"2026-01-11T22:26:35","slug":"reference-to-trumps-impeachments-is-removed-from-the-display-of-his-smithsonian-photo-portrait-ap-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/2026\/01\/11\/reference-to-trumps-impeachments-is-removed-from-the-display-of-his-smithsonian-photo-portrait-ap-news\/","title":{"rendered":"Reference to Trump’s impeachments is removed from the display of his Smithsonian photo portrait – AP News"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 President Donald Trump\u2019s photo portrait display at the Smithsonian\u2019s National Portrait Gallery has had references to his two impeachments removed, the latest apparent change at the collection of museums he has accused of bias as he asserts his influence over how official presentations document U.S. history. <\/p>\n

The wall text, which summarized Trump\u2019s first presidency and noted his 2024 comeback victory, was part of the museum\u2019s \u201cAmerican Presidents\u201d exhibition. The description had been placed alongside a photograph of Trump taken during his first term. Now, a different photo appears without any accompanying text block, though the text was available online.<\/a><\/span> Trump was the only president whose display in the gallery, as seen Sunday, did not include any extended text.<\/p>\n

The White House did not say whether it sought any changes. Nor did a Smithsonian statement in response to Associated Press questions. But Trump ordered in August that Smithsonian officials review all exhibits<\/a><\/span> before the nation celebrates the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence on July 4. The Republican administration said the effort would \u201censure alignment with the president\u2019s directive to celebrate American exceptionalism, remove divisive or partisan narratives, and restore confidence in our shared cultural institutions.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s original \u201cportrait label,\u201d as the Smithsonian calls it, notes Trump\u2019s Supreme Court nominations and his administration\u2019s development of COVID-19 vaccines. That section concludes: \u201cImpeached twice, on charges of abuse of power and incitement of insurrection after supporters attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, he was acquitted by the Senate in both trials.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then the text continues: \u201cAfter losing to Joe Biden in 2020, Trump mounted a historic comeback in the 2024 election. He is the only president aside from Grover Cleveland (1837\u2013 1908) to have won a nonconsecutive second term.\u201d<\/p>\n

Asked about the display, White House spokesman Davis Ingle celebrated the new photograph, which shows Trump, brow furrowed, leaning over his Oval Office desk. Ingle said it ensures Trump\u2019s \u201cunmatched aura … will be felt throughout the halls of the National Portrait Gallery.\u201d<\/p>\n

The portrait was taken by White House photographer Daniel Torok, who is credited in the display that includes medallions noting Trump is the 45th and 47th president. Similar numerical medallions appear alongside other presidents\u2019 painted portraits that also include the more extended biographical summaries such as what had been part of Trump\u2019s display.<\/p>\n

Sitting presidents are represented by photographs until their official paintings are commissioned and completed. <\/p>\n

Ingle did not answer questions about whether Trump or a White House aide, on his behalf, asked for anything related to the portrait label. <\/p>\n

The gallery said in a statement that it had previously rotated two photographs of Trump from its collection before putting up Torok\u2019s work. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe museum is beginning its planned update of the America\u2019s Presidents gallery which will undergo a larger refresh this Spring,\u201d the gallery statement said. \u201cFor some new exhibitions and displays, the museum has been exploring quotes or tombstone labels, which provide only general information, such as the artist\u2019s name.\u201d<\/p>\n

For now, references to Presidents Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton being impeached in 1868 and 1998, respectively, remain as part of their portrait labels, as does President Richard Nixon\u2019s 1974 resignation as a result of the Watergate scandal. <\/p>\n

And, the gallery statement noted, \u201cThe history of Presidential impeachments continues to be represented in our museums, including the National Museum of American History.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump has made clear his intentions to shape how the federal government documents U.S. history and culture. He has offered an especially harsh assessment of how the Smithsonian and other museums have featured chattel slavery<\/a><\/span> as a seminal variable in the nation\u2019s development but also taken steps to reshape how he and his contemporary rivals are depicted. <\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

In the months before his order for a Smithsonian review, he fired the head archivist of the National Archives<\/a><\/span> and said he was firing the National Portrait Gallery\u2019s director, Kim Sajet, as part of his overhaul. Sajet maintained the backing of the Smithsonian\u2019s governing board, but she ultimately resigned. <\/p>\n

At the White House, Trump has designed a notably partisan and subjective \u201cPresidential Walk of Fame\u201d<\/a><\/span> featuring gilded photographs of himself and his predecessors \u2014 with the exception of Biden, who is represented by an autopen \u2014 along with plaques describing their presidencies. <\/p>\n

The White House said at the time that Trump himself was a primary author of the plaques. Notably, Trump\u2019s two plaques praise the 45th and 47th president as a historically successful figure while those under Biden\u2019s autopen stand-in describe the 46th executive as \u201cby far, the worst President in American History\u201d who \u201cbrought our Nation to the brink of destruction.\u201d<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

Barrow reported from Atlanta. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 President Donald Trump\u2019s photo portrait display at the Smithsonian\u2019s National Portrait Gallery has had references to his two impeachments removed, the latest apparent change at the collection of museums he has accused of bias as he asserts his influence over how official presentations document U.S. history. The wall text, which summarized Trump\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9092,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9091","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9091","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9091"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9091\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9092"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9091"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9091"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9091"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}