The Smithsonian is believed to have falsely claimed that President Richard Nixon was impeached.
In its gallery called “America’s Presidents,” the museum seemed to have included a biography of Nixon, suggesting that he was impeached.
Jim Byron, president and CEO of the Richard Nixon Foundation, wrote a letter to the gallery’s acting director, Elliot Gruber, criticizing that the Smithsonian’s biography on Nixon said that “investigations into a break in at the Watergate complex and the subsequent cover up resulted in Nixon’s impeachment on the charges of obstruction of justice, abuse of power, and contempt of Congress.” The biography correctly notes, however, that Nixon “became the first President to resign.”
Byron detailed in the letter that Nixon was “never impeached,” explaining that he “resigned on August 9, 1974 before the House of Representatives had voted on any article(s) of impeachment.” He further noted that the exhibit’s “earlier, replaced, label did not include this error.”
“I trust you will take immediate steps to correct this mistake, lest the many visitors to the handsome new gallery are misled about the 37th President,” he added.
Last year, the Smithsonian was reviewed by the Trump administration to ensure that its exhibits were in line with President Trump’s order, “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History.”
“This initiative aims to ensure alignment with the President’s directive to celebrate American exceptionalism, remove divisive or partisan narratives, and restore confidence in our shared cultural institutions,” White House Senior Associate Staff Secretary Lindsey Halligan and Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought wrote to Smithsonian Institution Secretary Lonnie Bunch, Domestic Policy Council’s Vince Haley, noting that the review will be a “constructive and collaborative effort” founded upon a “respect for the Smithsonian’s vital mission and its extraordinary contributions.”
