Nearly $190 million in Smithsonian funding now depends on compliance with President Donald Trump’s executive order on American history. Trump also drew criticism after saying Iran could “take out” Los Angeles or San Diego. The condition gives the White House’s Office of Management and Budget a formal role in shaping how the Smithsonian tells the American story.
Federal Funding and the Smithsonian
A fiscal-year-2027 footnote covers funds carried over from last year in two of the Smithsonian’s main salaries and expenses accounts. It states: “To the extent permitted by law, amounts apportioned shall be available for obligation in a manner consistent with Executive Order 14253 (March 27, 2025), ‘Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History.’” Public records show officials included the footnote in two recent apportionments of federal funds.
The executive order accuses the Smithsonian of spreading “divisive narratives.” The White House’s Office of Management and Budget is using the condition to influence how the institution presents the American story. The funding action covers nearly $190 million, according to the account.
Trump has also tried to fire a Smithsonian museum director on social media. He ordered warning signs placed outside its American-history museum and demanded that it remove a modernist sculpture he dislikes. A letter from Interior Secretary Doug Burgum revealed fresh details about signs the White House plans to install near the museum.
The condition ties access to federal money to the terms of the executive order, “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History.” Trump issued the order on March 27, 2025. The fiscal-year-2027 footnote concerns funds carried over from last year, not a separate account described in the article.
Remarks on California Cities
At a Monday night rally in Nebraska, Trump said Iran could “take out” Los Angeles or San Diego, calling that possibility “a small price to pay for keeping the world safe, keeping our country safe.” On Tuesday, the White House said Trump wasn’t calling for an attack on U.S. cities; he was explaining that he wanted to prevent Iran from gaining that capability.
White House Communications Director Steven Cheung said on social media that people had misunderstood and misrepresented Trump’s comments in a “media freakout” that was “not rooted in reality.” Cheung wrote: “He was clearly stating U.S. cities would have been threatened if a nuclear Iran hadn’t been stopped. America is safer because of the President.” He added that Iran “has no nuclear, no navy, no air force, and no money.”
Iran says it isn’t pursuing nuclear weapons, though it has enriched uranium to near-weapons-grade levels that have no civilian purpose. Trump made the remarks while discussing the Iran war and the resulting high gas prices, which have become a midterm liability for Republicans.
Criticism of the President’s Words
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat who could run for president in 2028, called Trump “deranged and dangerous.” He said Trump was “saying our foreign enemies should ‘take out’ Los Angeles and San Diego.” Jim Desmond, the Republican congressional nominee in a metro San Diego district, also criticized the remarks.
“As a Navy veteran, I served to protect Americans, not write off American cities as an acceptable price of war,” Desmond wrote on social media. He added, “no American family should ever be treated as collateral damage.”
Trump has often criticized U.S. cities during campaigns, particularly large areas that lean heavily Democratic. At a recent North Carolina rally, he called the state’s cities “blood-soaked killing fields.” FBI statistics place North Carolina’s violent crime rate in the middle third of states.
Trump delivered the Nebraska remarks in his familiar, meandering rally style. He speaks for extended periods, often an hour or more, and only occasionally follows prepared remarks on a teleprompter. The White House framed his words as a warning about a potential threat, while Newsom and Desmond condemned the reference to American cities being taken out.