Trump Fires Head of Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery, Cites Opposition to “DEI Agenda”

By Staff, Agencies

President Donald Trump has dismissed Kim Sajet, the director of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Portrait Gallery, as part of his broader campaign to overhaul the leadership of the nation’s cultural institutions.

In a statement posted Friday on his Truth Social platform, Trump labeled Sajet “a highly partisan person, and a strong supporter of DEI,” referring to diversity, equity and inclusion programs. He argued such values were “totally inappropriate for her position.”

Sajet, originally from the Netherlands and raised in Australia, had served as director since 2013 after being appointed by former President Barack Obama. Before that, she led the Historical Society of Pennsylvania.

The firing continues Trump’s pattern of reshaping federally funded cultural spaces. He has accused institutions like the Smithsonian of promoting what he calls “leftist” and “anti-American” narratives.

In March, Trump signed an executive order aimed at cutting funding for programs at the Smithsonian Institution that he claimed promote “divisive, race-centered ideology.” The order assigned Vice President JD Vance—who also sits on the Smithsonian’s Board of Regents—to oversee the removal of such content from museums, education centers, research institutions, and the National Zoo.

Trump made a similar move in February when he removed the leadership of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, also under the Smithsonian umbrella. He dismissed the chairman and president, replaced most of the board with political allies, and was subsequently voted in as the new chairman himself.

The series of moves underscores Trump’s effort to reshape America’s cultural institutions in line with his administration’s ideological stance, particularly against DEI initiatives.