Podbit · The Bulwark Podcast

Clint Smith: Make America What It Set Out to Be

Explore episode Jul 3, 2026

History

The Man Standing Between Trump and the Smithsonian

Clint Smith: Make America What It Set Out to Be · Jul 3, 2026 History

Lonnie Bunch is the founding director of the National Museum of African American History and Culture and the first Black Secretary of the Smithsonian. Trump has repeatedly attacked the institution, but has never directly named Bunch — and when they met for lunch, Trump skipped the culture war and spent the time asking Bunch about chandeliers. Bunch is navigating the impossible: protecting the institution he built without provoking the president who could destroy it.

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Data point $10B

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The Wall of Smells

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