President Donald Trump is obsessed with imposing his will and image on as much of Washington, D.C., as he can, and now, per a report from NOTUS, his next potential target has been revealed, with one expert calling the plot "ridiculous."
In a piece published Friday morning, NOTUS reported that the Office of Management and Budget is prepping a scheme to force the Smithsonian Museum — the largest museum complex in the U.S. — to conform to Trump's priorities and political agenda, by attempting to withhold funding allocated to it by Congress if it does not comply. This marks not just another example of Trump's desire to control as much of the nation's capital as possible, but also of his administration's unconstitutional hijacking of Congress's power of the purse.
"An apportionment — documents that direct federal agencies on how to spend congressionally approved money — approved by OMB in May is aimed at compelling the Smithsonian to spend congressionally appropriated funding in a way that’s consistent with the FY 2026 President’s Budget' in order to receive it," NOTUS detailed. "The president’s budget differed widely from what Congress ultimately chose to fund. OMB also instructed the Smithsonian to submit a request 'specifying each activity and the associated estimated federal obligation amount.'"
The report continued: "Trump has repeatedly tried to reshape the Smithsonian, insisting its prior offerings were too 'woke' and insufficiently patriotic. The May directive puts the Smithsonian in a major bind, creating hurdles to access congressional funding, experts said."
One anonymous source, described as an ex-Capitol Hill staffer and "appropriations expert," said that these demands from the Trump administration put the Smithsonian "in a ridiculous position," that could lead to "criminal" penalties or a "constitutional crisis."
“The budget guys at the Smithsonian, it puts them in a ridiculous position,” the ex-staffer explained. “If they spend money that OMB tells them to spend, then they’re in violation of the Antideficiency Act, which dates back to the Civil War. It involves an agency or a person spending money that’s not been appropriated, and it has criminal f——king penalties, man. And if they don’t spend money Congress told them to spend, then they’re in violation of the Impoundment Control Act, which does not have criminal penalties. But it’s a pretty good constitutional crisis.”
