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Is this the end of history?

🛒 Cartoon: A Market Basket moment Revising the nation's history, Trump style By David Shribman In his first term, Donald Trump mounted a relentless, remorseless war against the truth, issuing according to the Washington Post 30,573 Last week, the White House sent the Smithsonian This order demands 'content corrections where necessary' to replace 'divisive or ideologically driven language' with what the administration claims would be 'unifying, historically accurate, and constructive descriptions' on exhibits. As benign as that might sound, it opens the door to a frontal attack on the independence of a cultural establishment known for its down-the-middle presentation of the nation's history. Advertisement With 21 museums, the Smithsonian is known as both the 'nation's attic' (its nickname) and the national curator (its functional role), with beloved items that include the 30-by-34-foot flag that inspired Francis Scott Key to write the lyrics to the 'Star-Spangled Banner.' But earlier this summer, under pressure from the administration, its National Museum of American History removed references to Trump's two impeachments from its Advertisement The reference to Trump was restored, but confidence in the museum has not been damaged. To be sure, collisions over the truth — what it is, who gets to tell it, what its purpose is — are as old as the Even so, the Smithsonian episode and its recent precursors — including David Kennedy, the Pulitzer-winning historian at Stanford University, expressed concern that the health, plurality, diversity, and integrity of America's civil institutions — celebrated since the time of Alexis de Tocqueville — are endangered. 'All history is contested, and national histories are among the most contested territories in the cultural landscape,' he said in an email exchange with me. 'But it has long been taken as a self-evident principle that the contestation must proceed with scrupulous attention to the facts and to responsible methods of research and presentation.' Advertisement Even the national parks have become battlegrounds, through the March executive order attacking instances where sites 'perpetuate a false reconstruction of American history, inappropriately minimize the value of certain historical events or figures, or include any other improper partisan ideology.' That prompted the senior director of cultural resources of the Beyond the administration's focus 'on the greatness of the achievements and progress of the American people' as mandated in that executive order, the administration also is seeking to force its own version of events onto contemporary life even as it applies a shiny varnish over the past. This summer, the administration expanded its airbrushing to include government data, when Trump fired a Labor Department official whose report on job creation didn't jibe with the president's expectations, hopes, or needs. This is the data that companies depend on to make critical decisions about investments and hiring, that academics use to chart the nation's economic direction, that policy makers use to determine when to act and when to remain still. Whitewashing this data, as Trump seems inclined to do, will only hurt the nation's ability to keep its economy humming. Economist Advertisement More broadly, if the facts about American history are obscured or buried, or if the truth is devalued or cancelled in the daily course of national government, the country will eventually become a land 'where ignorant armies clash by night,' as Already the fight about the truth has divided the country, with a An assault against facts, or against history, or against fair-minded renderings of events commemorated in national parks and landmarks, are in essence an assault against the oldest values of the country, forged in the ultimate rebellion against authority undertaken by the Revolutionary Founders. But the blueprint for fighting crimes against the truth is even older, and is found in Scripture. 'These are the things you shall do,' the What the right, left, and center are saying about Trump's Ukraine attempts at peace-making Curated by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine delivers remarks at a meeting with President Donald Trump and European leaders. DOUG MILLS/NYT FROM THE RIGHT In The New York Sun, Advertisement FROM THE LEFT In The New York Times, columnist FROM THE CENTER In The Atlantic, staff writers Advertisement War and peas By Christopher Weyant Christopher Weyant Before you leave... Trivia by Gwen Egan Around what percentage of the Smithsonian's collections are on display at any given time? A. Less than 1% B. More than 50% C. Less than 5% D. More than 25% Think you know the answer? Try your hand Thanks for reading Right, Left, and Center. Globe Opinion's free weekly newsletter about local and national politics. ✍🏼 If you'd like to receive it in your inbox every Wednesday, you can 📬 Delivered Wednesdays. David Shribman is a nationally syndicated columnist. He can be reached at