Smithsonian Slapped Down

Following up on the earlier posting about the Smithsonian's deal with Showtime, Boing-Boing ("A Directory of Wonderful Things") has provided updates on the House of Representatives' slapping the Institute, first in this letter and then in the 2007 Appropriations bill. The House Appropriations committee requested that the Board of Regents take the matter up at its May meeting and report back to it within 90 days regarding the committee's concern that the agreement violated the letter if not the spirit of the Smithsonian Trust. And to get the point across doubly, Boing-Boing reports that the proposed budget would contain language precluding such deals and would reduce the budget by $5 million dollars. Ouch!