WATCH: ‘Shocking’ Ben Franklin smear leaves Smithsonian chief with ‘no regrets’

The head of nan country's premier American history museum said she has nary regrets astir immoderate of nan museum’s exhibits nether her tenure aft an master confronted her pinch a "shocking" show that he said smeared founding begetter Benjamin Franklin.

Smithsonian National Museum of American History Director Anthea Hartig faced aggravated questioning from lawmakers during 2 Capitol Hill hearings this week. The hearings followed a White House Domestic Policy Council study accusing nan depository of utilizing payer dollars and its position arsenic a world-renowned institution to beforehand a "radical activistic ideology."

During a House hearing connected Tuesday, Heritage Foundation master Mike Gonzalez testified that a multiyear typical grounds titled "The Electric Dr. Franklin" included a show that "pondered whether he had ever done experiments, electrical electroshock connected indentured servants aliases slaves." Gonzalez testified that nan show included this proposal "without producing immoderate grounds whatsoever," which he called "shocking."

"Why smear a founding begetter specified arsenic Ben Franklin by pondering specified a really bizarre thing," asked Gonzalez.

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Smithsonian National Museum of American History Director Anthea Hartig (right) was questioned by House lawmakers connected controversies involving nan museum, including 1 grounds that an master said amounted to a "smear" against founding begetter Benjamin Franklin. (GraphicaArtis/Getty Images; Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

Immediately aft Gonzalez’s testimony, Rep. Brian Jack, R-Ga., confronted Hartig, saying, "We've heard a batch of concerning examples arsenic conscionable referenced. Do you person immoderate regrets successful your tenure frankincense acold [about] immoderate of nan exhibits person been displayed? Do you regret immoderate of nan exhibits and if so, which?"

Hartig answered, "I americium incredibly proud of nan activity we've done, but we are imperfect and we surely person made mistakes. But I don't person immoderate regrets."

Jack pressed further, asking, "Which mistakes would you opportunity you've made?"

To which Hartig responded, "There are ever actual errors."

"One of my favorite, currently," she went on, "is that 1 of our volunteers has pointed retired that we've been mislabeling a coin successful nan American Presidency grounds for years, and we were, of course, you know, somewhat embarrassed astir that, but we fixed it."

Hartig became head of nan Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History successful February 2019. The Benjamin Franklin grounds opened to nan nationalist successful 2021 and remained connected show done 2025.

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National Museum of American History Director Dr. Anthea Hartig is sworn successful during an Oversight and Government Reform subcommittee connected Delivering connected Government Efficiency proceeding connected Capitol Hill connected July 21, 2026 successful Washington, DC. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

The depository presently has a webpage containing expanded worldly from nan exhibit. The tract states that "researchers besides utilized group arsenic conductors to find really acold an electrical complaint mightiness travel, and if electrical effects would slice pinch distance. Franklin wrote astir experiments successful which he took shocks and utilized family and friends successful these ways, though he seldom identified who successful peculiar assisted him. Indentured servants and enslaved group successful his family could besides person been used, though we whitethorn ne'er cognize for certain."

A sweeping caller White House study concluded that nan Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History has go a taxpayer-backed institution of "ideological capture" and "extreme governmental activism."

According to nan 162-page "Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History" report, delivered connected America’s 250th birthday, NMAH treats nan American communicative arsenic a governmental instrumentality alternatively than a shared nationalist inheritance.

The White House Domestic Policy Council wrote that nan "Smithsonian Institution, and nan National Museum of American History successful particular, nether its existent activity and existent interpretive ideology, cannot beryllium trusted to show America’s communicative honestly and successful a measurement that is inspiring, unifying, and worthy of our awesome republic."

Further, nan study said that "by nan volition and astatine nan guidance of existent Museum and Smithsonian leadership, NMAH has go taxable to organization seizure by a radical, activistic ideology that is fundamentally opposed to telling nan noble, honorable communicative of nan awesome state we cognize and love."

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The Smithsonian's National Museum of American History is being called retired for being 'ideologically captured' and presenting woke revisionist history connected nan play of America's 250th birthday. (Kevin Carter)

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During her grounds Tuesday, Hartig said that "the Smithsonian takes nan concerns raised successful nan White House Domestic Policy Counsel's study seriously, and arsenic we proceed to truth cheque nan report, we unwaveringly attest that it does not reasonably aliases accurately qualify nan afloat assemblage of activity astatine nan museum."

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She added that "there is ever room for improvement, but I besides cognize nan beauty and nan inspiration and nan expertise that lies successful our collections, our exhibits, and our programing."

Fox News Digital reached retired to nan Smithsonian Institution, nan National Museum of American History, and Gonzalez for further comment.