Smithsonian History Museum Director Defends Exhibits After Criticism Over Benjamin Franklin Display

Anthea Hartig, director of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, testified before Congress this week and stated she harbors no regrets about the museum’s exhibits during her leadership, despite pointed questions from Republican lawmakers about the institution’s curatorial direction. Hartig’s remarks came following a White House Domestic Policy Council report that alleged the museum has misused public funding to promote what it characterized as “radical activist ideology.”

During a House hearing on Tuesday, Heritage Foundation expert Mike Gonzalez highlighted a multiyear special exhibition called “The Electric Dr. Franklin” that he said included an unsubstantiated suggestion that founding father Benjamin Franklin may have conducted electrical experiments on enslaved people or indentured servants. Gonzalez characterized the display as presenting this proposition “without producing any evidence whatsoever,” calling it “shocking” and accusing the museum of attempting to smear Franklin’s legacy.

Rep. Brian Jack, R-Ga., pressed Hartig directly on whether she regretted any of the museum’s exhibitions. Hartig acknowledged that the institution is “imperfect” and has made mistakes, but maintained she had no regrets. When asked to identify specific errors, she cited a mislabeled coin in the American Presidency exhibit that volunteers had discovered and the museum subsequently corrected.

Hartig took over as director in February 2019. The Benjamin Franklin exhibit, which opened to the public in 2021, remained on display through 2025 and continues to be available on the museum’s website with expanded historical materials.

A sweeping 162-page White House report titled “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History,” released on the nation’s 250th birthday, concluded that the National Museum of American History has become an institution subject to “ideological capture” and “extreme political activism.” The document asserted that the museum treats American history as a political instrument rather than as a shared national inheritance worthy of the country’s legacy.

During her testimony, Hartig said the Smithsonian takes the White House report’s concerns seriously but maintains the document does not accurately represent the full scope of the museum’s work. She emphasized that while there is always room for improvement, the museum’s collections, exhibitions, and programming contain significant beauty, inspiration, and expertise.