Fascists Hate Facts. That’s Why Trump Wants to Make Up His Own

Whitewashing our past to fit one leader’s politics isn’t patriotism. It’s propaganda — and free democracies don’t survive on lies.

In a free democracy, history belongs to the people, not the ruling party or person. It is not rewritten to suit the preferences of whoever happens to be in power. Yet, President Trump’s push to reshape the Smithsonian Institution’s exhibits into a narrow, politically approved version of “American exceptionalism” represents exactly the kind of state-controlled historical narrative that free societies reject, and authoritarian regimes embrace. The American story is part glory and part horror. To deny the latter is to diminish the former.

The Smithsonian is not a partisan arm of the government. Its role is to preserve, study, and share the full, complex story of the United States, including its triumphs, tragedies, and moral failures. That’s why attempts to purge “improper ideology” from its museums or remove references to events like Trump’s impeachments are so dangerous. These are not ideological insertions; they are documented facts. Editing them out is not “restoring truth.” It’s erasing it.

As the nation prepares to celebrate its 250th birthday, the time has not come to…