“Aspirations,” the Smithsonian’s semiquincentennial exhibition, opened yesterday in the Smithsonian Castle. The collection of objects tied to America’s past has gotten glowing reviews, all of which note its nuanced take on U.S. history. That nuance makes for quite a contrast with the celebratory vibe of the Trump administration’s Great American State Fair that’s being erected right outside the Castle’s doors.

Despite the praise, there’s more than a hint of melancholy. In a New York Times interview ahead of the opening, Smithsonian leader Lonnie Bunch hinted that it might be the last show he curates. It’s been widely speculated that when Trump appointees gain control of the board later this year, they’ll get rid of Bunch, previously the founding director of the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

If that happens, the Smithsonian may be next year’s version of the Kennedy Center: The locus of culture-war clashes between MAGA power and Washington tradition. Already, the administration has ordered a sweeping review of Smithsonian content. But with Bunch at the helm — and a board that couldn’t be replaced overnight like the Kennedy Center’s — there was only so much they could alter. “I won’t let anybody tell us what to do,” Bunch told the Post last week.

Sophisticated D.C. types can sometimes be a little patronizing about the Smithsonian: A great place to take visiting relatives, but maybe a little fusty. Yet, just like with the Kennedy Center, we’ll miss the current version when it’s gone. After the exhibition closes in late July, it could be a rough time at the Castle.

Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. A federal court has issued an injunction forbidding the political-news site NOTUS from renaming itself The Star, City Cast’s Emma Uber reports. It looks like a major whoopsie on the part of NOTUS, which has planned a splashy relaunch today using the name to highlight its evolution into a general-interest Washington publication. NOTUS owner Robert Allbritton’s father once owned the Washington Star newspaper. But someone else now owns the defunct paper’s trademark — and sued. The plaintiff, conservative publisher Dovid Efune, plans to launch his own Washington Star.

White House Bunker. “The White House is the new green zone,” declares The Atlantic’s Matt Viser in a piece tied to the latest shooting incident. Viser provides a history of fortifications around the executive mansion. Newcomers to D.C. may be surprised to know that until the 1990s, you could drive along Pennsylvania Ave. and park right in front of the place. Even old-timers in D.C. might be surprised to learn that, in the 1890s, the White House grounds were so wide open that souvenir-seeking tourists once tried to cut a lock of hair from the head of President Grover Cleveland’s daughter.

Dueling Fourths. The publication still (as of yesterday) called NOTUS reports on the duel between two organizations in charge of commemorating the semiquincentennial: America 250 (an apolitical body chartered by Congress) and Freedom 250 (a much newer pro-Trump outfit). Unsurprising conclusion: America 250 is $100 million in the hole; Freedom 250 has gotten $80 million from taxpayers.

Harassment Capitol. One of the biggest workplaces in D.C. isn’t governed by the same sexual harassment rules that protect private sector employees. A new CNN investigation reports on endemic harassment of Congressional staff. For years, Congress exempted itself from most employment laws, but even after recent reforms, the women chronicled in the piece find the system a byzantine “no man’s land.”

Friends and Alleys. Some 2,000 alley lots are about to get a lot easier to build on, Urban Turf reports. D.C. was once known for its alley dwellings, but 20th century zoning — which saw those houses as slums — made many of them illegal. Now, as the city focuses on affordability, the Zoning Commission is tweaking rules to allow construction of more apartments and small residences that open onto alleys.

Blaming McDuffie for Pepco Prices. Writing in the Hill Rag, the Sierra Club DC’s Mark Rodeffer makes the energy-price case against Kenyan McDuffie: In 2018, he says, then-Councilmember McDuffie tanked a measure requiring Pepco to buy 80 percent of its power through wind or solar contracts. According to Rodeffer — whose organization has endorsed Janeese Lewis George — bills are hundreds more per year as a result. Complicating his case: the councilmember behind the doomed measure, Mary Cheh, has endorsed McDuffie.

Commanders on a Budget. The Washington Commanders introduced a “value menu” of concessions items under $10 for season ticket holders — a sign that new ownership and a popular quarterback hasn’t brought back the days when there were waiting lists for season tickets. The tickets themselves start around $2,100 apiece in the lower bowl.

Clubbed. Trendy private facilities like Ned’s Club may be all the rage in Washington, but older private clubs aren’t doing so well. The Business Journal reports that the City Club has shuttered after nearly 40 years at Metro Center. The report says that the club, where dues can range to nearly $5,000 a year, was facing pressure to spruce itself up to compete with the newcomers.

Finally: Popville spotted no-parking signs around town tied to a Netflix shoot. The streaming behemoth is currently filming An Innocent Girl, in which Kerry Washington plays “a young and ambitious woman who is seduced by a high-powered D.C. couple” and “drawn into a dangerous world of sex, power, and murder.” It will run sometime next year.

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