By Piper Hudspeth Blackburn, René Marsh, Camila DeChalus, Kit Maher, CNN

Washington, D.C. (CNN) — The Smithsonian Institution is facing a deadline to hand over information to the White House related to a review of its exhibitions by Friday, as it navigates an unprecedented degree of scrutiny of its museums.

The review is part of an ongoing effort from the Trump administration to align prominent institutions with his cultural agenda, which has raised questions over whether the White House should have a say on content showcased at the nation’s leading museums.

While the Smithsonian, a unique public-private trust, does not consider itself an executive agency, President Donald Trump, through an executive order, has tasked aides with rooting out “woke” ideology and what it considers anti-American propaganda at the institution.

Lindsey Halligan, the Trump aide leading his review of the Smithsonian, told CNN that it considers White House oversight appropriate because “the Smithsonian is not an autonomous institution, as 70% of its funding comes from taxpayers.”

In an August letter from the White House, the Smithsonian was asked to turn over a wide array of materials, from gallery labels to future exhibition plans and internal communications about artwork selection.

Friday is the first of three deadlines given by the White House for its review of the Smithsonian and its planned programming for America’s 250th birthday, to be celebrated next July.

The Smithsonian, which is conducting its own review, has assembled a team to respond to the administration’s requests.

It comes as the leader of the nearly two-century-old institution, Lonnie Bunch III, treads a fine line between maintaining a cordial, working relationship with the White House and defending the organization’s independence, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter who asked not to be named as they were not authorized to speak publicly.

One source with knowledge of internal conversations at the Smithsonian told CNN that, from their perspective, Bunch appears to be “holding the line as much as he can.”

Leadership at the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC), which has been targeted by Trump for focusing too much on “how bad slavery was,” told staff earlier this year that programming is not expected to shift despite the executive order, according to several of the sources who spoke to CNN.

However, even as Bunch is being urged by members of the Smithsonian’s Board of Regents, which governs the institution, to continue to assert its independence, artists who spoke to CNN have noted that the environment is already driving controversial decisions affecting the Smithsonian.

Bunch could not immediately be reached for comment.

Halligan called the White House review “non-negotiable,” saying in a statement: “The American taxpayers deserve nothing less, which is why the White House will ensure the audit is conducted impartially.”

The Smithsonian under pressure

While the Smithsonian has faced criticism over its exhibitions over the years, it has never been subject to a White House review. Still, the Smithsonian is not immune to pressure from the federal government, which funds two-thirds of its billion-dollar budget.

Since Trump’s second term, the Smithsonian has made moves that have prompted concerns from artists and independent arts organizations about whether the museum complex will be able to maintain its independence.

On Friday, two artists who were scheduled to speak at a Smithsonian symposium on its exhibit, “The Shape of Power,” withdrew from the program, citing concerns that the event had been clouded by “censorship.” The symposium had originally been planned as an open event, but was changed to invite-only, according to two sources familiar with the matter.

One person with knowledge of the Smithsonian’s decision told CNN this was partly “to stay off the radar” and “partly out of safety for artists and speakers who are afraid of MAGA people showing up.”

President Trump specifically took aim at “The Shape of Power” in the executive order directing the Smithsonian review, where he took issue with the exhibition in part because it “promotes the view that race is not a biological reality but a social construct.”

In a statement shared with CNN, Nicholas Galanin, one of the artists who withdrew from the symposium, said: “I cannot participate in the symposium and remain in alignment with my moral convictions. The decision to make the symposium a private event with a curated guest list and request that we not record or share it on social media effectively censors those of us who would be participating.”

A Smithsonian spokesperson said registration for the event was always by invitation only.

The spokesperson said that the symposium was a venue for scholarship and “never designed as an event for the general public,” but that “participants were encouraged to share the invitation with their networks.”

“Because not all participants consented to being recorded, the decision was made not to document in this manner, including on social media,” she said in a statement, adding: “We are disappointed that Nicholas Galanin will not participate in the symposium but respect his decision and thank him for his important contributions to this groundbreaking exhibition.”

In January, the Smithsonian eliminated its Office of Diversity after Trump issued an executive order threatening federal investigations for “illegal DEI” (diversity, equity and inclusion).

Months later in March, Trump targeted what he called “improper ideology” at the Smithsonian via executive order, putting Vice President JD Vance in charge of stopping government spending on exhibits that don’t align with his agenda.

Sasa Aakil, an artist and poet, said some of her and her colleagues’ work was cut before a poetry reading at a NMAAHC event in May commemorating Malcolm X. She said she was told by event organizers that the institution had cut some of poems, which were about racial justice and other related things, because the institution was very cautious due to increased scrutiny from the White House.

The Smithsonian did not return CNN’s request for comments on the incident.

In June, Trump claimed that he was firing the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery director, Kim Sajet, over her alleged partisanship and support for DEI. Later, the Smithsonian publicly stated that the president has no authority over personnel decisions, but Sajet resigned a few weeks after being targeted by Trump.

Then, in July, artist Amy Sherald canceled a major Smithsonian exhibition of her work that had been due to run this fall, citing censorship over one of her paintings depicting the Statue of Liberty modeled after a transgender artist. The Smithsonian denied that it had censored Sherald and said that they had asked to include a video that would contextualize the painting, before Sherald ultimately decided to withdraw her show.

And in August, the Smithsonian faced public outcry after the National Museum of American History removed a temporary placard referencing Trump’s two impeachments from an exhibit related to the presidency.

In follow-up statements, the museum system insisted the removal was temporary and denied it had been pressured by any government official to make changes to its exhibits. It was reinstalled days later with some changes.

Looking towards the future

Amid Trump’s dissatisfaction with the Smithsonian will come an opportunity to reshape its leadership, though indirectly. The Board of Regents selects the Smithsonian’s leader, and some of its 17 members are supposed to be ultimately approved by the president.

The other members include six lawmakers from Congress and regents from the public, with Vice President Vance serving as an ex officio member. Chief Justice John Roberts serves as the head.

Six of the nine general public regents’ spots have terms that end in 2026, giving Trump a chance to expand his influence on the board before the midterm elections shake up Congress. New board members are appointed via congressional joint resolutions, which the president must sign into law.

Michigan Sen. Gary Peters, a Democrat who sits on the board, told CNN he believes Bunch is doing “a very good job,” and insisted that the Smithsonian already “goes out of its way” to make sure its exhibits are free of bias.

In a letter last week , Peters, along with Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, who is also on the Board of Regents, and two other Senate Democrats urged Bunch to safeguard the institution’s independence. They also asked the Smithsonian to share any materials given to the White House with Congress.

House Democrats have also echoed support for the institution. Rep. Joe Morelle, the top Democrat on the House panel that oversees the Smithsonian, told CNN in a statement that Bunch and Smithsonian experts “objectively and accurately tell the American story.”

Bunch, a historian and curator who is well-regarded throughout the museum world, navigated rough political waters before as the founding director of the NMAAHC.

He even wrote in a 2019 memoir that the “Smithsonian could easily become a pawn in larger political debates.”

He also detailed what it was like when Trump visited the NMAAHC for the first time in 2017. Trump showed enthusiasm during the parts of the tour that highlighted the contributions of neurosurgeon Ben Carson and boxer Muhammad Ali. Trump later praised the museum for sharing “the great struggle for freedom and equality that prevailed against the sins of slavery and the injustice of discrimination.”

But in his second term, the president changed his tune. Last month, he escalated his attacks on the Smithsonian, claiming in a post on social media that “everything discussed is how horrible our Country is, how bad Slavery was, and how unaccomplished the downtrodden have been — Nothing about Success, nothing about Brightness, nothing about the Future.”

Yet a White House official said Trump had a “productive and cordial lunch meeting” with Bunch a few days later. He struck a positive tone on the Smithsonian this week, declaring the institution was in the process of making “big changes.”

“You know, they were also told what to do by people that came before me, in all fairness, but they’re making changes,” he said.

The institution has yet to announce any changes to its exhibitions. The Trump His administration has given the Smithsonian until December to implement any “corrections” to its content. It’s unclear at this moment how the White House could enforce that request.

This story has been updated with additional information.

CNN’s Michael Williams contributed to this report.

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