Trump wants to remake the Smithsonian — again

President Donald Trump has some big plans for George Washington. Thirty feet big.

In a series of late-night Truth Social posts Friday, Trump called on the Smithsonian Institution to erect a 30-foot “Washington Colossus” outside the National Museum of American History, part of a sweeping proposal to reshape how the museum presents the nation’s first president.

The massive statue would replace “Infinity,” an abstract stainless-steel sculpture by artist José de Rivera that has stood outside the museum since 1967.

“That strange modernist sculpture tells visitors nothing about America, inspires no one, and honors none of our Great American Heroes,” Trump wrote. “George Washington does.”

At 30 feet, the proposed Washington would be more than 10 feet taller than the 19-foot seated Abraham Lincoln inside the Lincoln Memorial and two feet taller than the Martin Luther King statute outside the National African-American Museum.

Trump also wants another, comparatively modest, 11-foot Washington statue installed inside the museum’s Flag Hall by Constitution Day on Sept. 17. That statue previously appeared at the Freedom 250 Grand Prix race in Washington.

The president called for the museum to immediately create a five-year exhibition devoted to Washington, running through Feb. 22, 2032 — the 300th anniversary of Washington’s birth.

Trump also criticized the museum for what he described as insufficient attention to Washington and other founders and proposed replacing its recently ended Center for Restorative History, which focused on stories historically excluded from the national narrative, with a “Center for American Heroes.”

The demands come just days after Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch announced he will retire at the end of the year following months of clashes between the institution and the White House over how American history is presented.

Bunch has said the administration’s pressure did not prompt his retirement. He has, however, repeatedly defended the Smithsonian’s independence and pushed back against White House criticism of its exhibitions.

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Whether Trump can actually order the changes is another question. The Smithsonian operates independently of the executive branch and is overseen by a Board of Regents.

Trump has increasingly sought to influence the institution. In March, he signed an executive order targeting what he called “improper ideology” at the Smithsonian, and his administration has since criticized exhibits dealing with slavery, race and other parts of American history.

Now, Trump has given the institution a considerably larger request.

“Replace a sculpture that says nothing about America with the man who, more than anyone else, says everything about America,” he wrote.