周二上午，华盛顿史密森尼学会旗下美国国家历史博物馆馆长安西娅・哈蒂格出席国会听证会，为博物馆工作进行辩护。此前白宫猛烈抨击这家位于首都的博物馆展览内容。
哈蒂格在开场陈述中表示：“我们所有工作遵循史密森尼学会的准则：恪守学术规范、力求史实准确、保持独立、超越党派立场。博物馆不会在美国各类政治争论中选边站队。我们保存、记录完整的美国社会史料，让公众接触真实的过往，自主得出结论。”
这场听证会隶属于众议院提升政府效率小组委员会，主题为《改写美国历史：审视史密森尼学会重塑历史叙事的相关举措》。
委员会一名发言人向美国广播公司证实，哈蒂格还将在周三出席众议院行政委员会的相关听证。
7 月 4 日，白宫国内政策委员会发布一份措辞尖锐的报告，点名哈蒂格，指责美国国家历史博物馆领导层推行 “极端政治激进主义”，宣扬一套 “激进的美国历史叙事”。周二听证会上，哈蒂格对报告中的指控予以反驳。
“史密森尼学会认真看待白宫国内政策委员会报告提出的关切。在持续核对报告内容的同时，我们坚定认为，这份报告无法公正、客观地评价博物馆全部工作。改进空间始终存在，但我同样清楚，我们馆藏、展览与公共项目中蕴含着价值、启迪与专业积淀。”
7 月 5 日，史密森尼学会发言人回应媒体采访时表示，机构始终致力于提供中立的历史教育。 “一百八十多年来，史密森尼学会依靠无党派、独立的学术研究服务美国民众，我们将继续坚守这一原则。”
本周哈蒂格出席听证，是自特朗普 2025 年 3 月 27 日签署行政令《还原美国历史的真相与理性》、将矛头对准史密森尼学会之后，该机构高层首次接受国会公开质询。
这份行政令要求副总统 J.D. 万斯协同总统国内政策顾问，清除史密森尼体系内 “不当意识形态内容”;政令称，刻意将美国描绘成负面形象的内容不应出现在联邦资助的文化机构中。
白宫自去年启动针对史密森尼学会的调查。史密森尼学会管理 21 座博物馆、美术馆以及国家动物园;7 月 4 日发布的这份报告，就是本次调查的产物，重点瞄准美国国家历史博物馆。
报告指责博物馆宣扬 “反白人激进主张”、“非法移民激进主张” 以及 “跨性别议题激进主张”，文中附带大量被白宫认定存在问题的展览资料照片。报告还抨击博物馆领导层不热爱美国。
报告写道：“这份报告提出的重大关切，并不只针对少数展览、几处争议性文字说明。现状如此，如果这家史密森尼旗舰历史博物馆能在每个入口悬挂提示标语，或许对大多数美国人，尤其是带孩子参观的家长更友好：‘警告：本馆展品由并不希望你热爱祖国的人策划。’”
哈蒂格周二驳斥这一说法，并邀请议员亲自到访实地参观。 “各位议员，你们看到的不会是一座背弃国家的机构;恰恰相反，正因为热爱这个国家，我们才愿意完整讲述全部历史，既有辉煌成就，也包含艰难求索。我热爱美利坚合众国。能够守护国家珍贵藏品、服务全体美国人，是我职业生涯莫大的荣幸。”
白宫国内政策委员会主任文斯・黑利向美国广播公司发布声明：“没有哪个美国人希望史密森尼美国国家历史博物馆沦为意识形态宣传阵地。 遗憾的是，这份报告证明，这家史密森尼旗舰博物馆已经变成了这样。我们期待史密森尼学会最终回归崇高使命：为本国下一代、全世界以及后世美国人讲述美国的故事。”
史密森尼学会会长朗尼・邦奇尚未公开发表评论。美国广播公司获取了一封他发给全体员工的内部信函，信中对报告结论提出异议。
邦奇写道，学会管理层正在审慎研读报告内容，但报告的评判 “有失公允。 “改进空间永远存在，但这份报告无法客观概括美国国家历史博物馆所有工作与全貌。在史密森尼学会，我们一切工作以学术、史实为准绳，坚定不移力求完整呈现美国历史。 身为公职人员与机构守护者，我们肩负使命，帮助国民获得理解、希望与清晰认知。为此，我们追求专业、坚持反思、不断成长。”
'The museum does not take sides': Smithsonian official defends institution amid Trump criticism
The director of the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History (MNAH) defended its work in a congressional hearing on Tuesday morning amidsharp criticism from the White Houseover the contents of the Washington, D.C. museum.
"Our work is governed by the Smithsonian standards of scholarship, accuracy, independence, and nonpartisanship," Anthea Hartig said. "The museum does not take sides in America's political debates. We preserve and document the evidence of American life in all of its breadth, so that the public can encounter the past and draw their own conclusions."
Hartig's comments came during her opening remarks to lawmakers in a House Subcommittee on Delivering Government Efficiency hearing titled "Rewriting American History: Examining the Smithsonian's Efforts to Reshape the Past."
She is also expected to testify in a related hearing on Wednesday before the Committee on House Administration, a committee spokesperson confirmed to ABC News.
Hartig was named in ascathing White House Domestic Policy Council reportreleased on July 4, accusing the MNAH and its leadership of engaging in "extreme political activism" and presenting "a radical view of American history."
She pushed back against the report's findings on Tuesday.
"The Smithsonian takes the concerns raised in the White House Domestic Policy Council's report seriously, and as we continue to fact-check the report, we unwaveringly attest that it does not fairly or accurately characterize the full body of work at the museum," Hartig said. "There is always room for improvement, but I also know the beauty and the inspiration and the expertise that lies in our collections, our exhibits, and our programming."
Asked about the report, a spokesperson for the Smithsonian told ABC News on July 5 that the institution remains committed to impartial learning.
"For more than 180 years, the Smithsonian has served the American public with nonpartisan and independent scholarship, and we remain committed to doing so," the spokesperson said.
Hartig's testimony this week marks the first time that a top leader at the Smithsonian gets grilled publicly by Congress after President Donald Trump targeted the institution in his March 27, 2025 executive order, "Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History."
The executive order directed Vice President J.D. Vance, in consultation with the president's advisers on domestic policy, "to remove improper ideology" from Smithsonian institutions, arguing that materials that cast America in a "negative light" have no place in federal cultural institutions.
The White House last yearlaunched an investigation into the Smithsonian, which oversees 21 museums, galleries and the national zoo, and released the July 4 report targeting the American history museum as part of this probe.
The report accuses the museum of "anti-White activism," "illegal alien activism," and "transgender activism." It also includes many photos of materials the White House has identified as problematic.
It also accused the museum's leaders of not loving America.
"The serious concerns raised in this report are not about a few exhibits or a few controversial labels," the report says. "As it stands today, it would benefit most Americans, especially parents bringing their children for a tour, if the Smithsonian's flagship history museum had a label at every entrance that reads: 'Warning: the exhibits in this museum were prepared by people who don't want you to love your country.'"
Hartig pushed back against this claim on Tuesday and invited lawmakers to visit the museum to view its contents themselves.
"I believe what you will find, madams and sirs, is not an institution that has forgotten its country, but one that loves it enough to tell the full sweep of history, our triumphs and our struggles," she said. "I love the United States of America. I consider it the privilege of my career to help preserve its treasures and serve the American people."
Vince Haley, the Director of the White House Domestic Policy Council, said in a statement to ABC News that "No American wants the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History to be a system of ideological activism."
"Unfortunately, the report demonstrates that is exactly what the Smithsonian's flagship museum has become," he said. "It is our hope and expectation that the Smithsonian will eventually rise once again to that noble obligation -- to tell America's story for our children, the world, and future generations of Americans," he added.
Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch, who has not addressed the report publicly, disputed its findings in an internal letter to staff that was obtained by ABC News.
Bunch wrote that Smithsonian leadership is "carefully" reviewing the report's findings, but said that the report's assessment is "not a fair characterization.
"While there will always be room for improvement, this report is not a fair characterization of the work and totality of the National Museum of American History," Bunch said in the letter. "At the Smithsonian, our work is driven by scholarship, accuracy, and an uncompromising commitment to tell the fullness of America's story."
"As public servants and the keepers of this institution, we are charged with helping a nation find understanding, hope, and clarity and as part of that duty, we are dedicated to excellence, reflection, and growth," Bunch added.
