Senators call on Smithsonian to build American Latino museum

A bi-partisan coalition of senators called on the Smithsonian Institution on Monday to commit to building the National Museum of the American Latino and the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum in Washington, D.C., after both houses of Congress voted to authorize the two museums as part of a $2.3 trillion year-end spending bill in 2020.

In a letter to Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch, the senators requested that the two museums "be located on or near the National Mall, to the maximum extent practicable,” The Hill reported.

The Smithsonian named boards for both museums earlier this year, and they are tasked with the site selection process.

Space on the National Mall is limited, however, and no museums have been constructed since the National Museum of African American History and Culture opened in 2016.

Supporters of the projects have claimed that building the museums anywhere else would “imply a lesser status” for the museums, compared to other prominent fixtures such as the National Air and Space Museum or the National Museum of American History.

"The addition of the two new museums on the Mall will further the Smithsonian’s mission by showcasing and highlighting the untold and overlooked contributions to our nation of both women and Latinos," the senators wrote to Bunch.

"It is fitting that these two museums be prominently located as that will help ensure that more visitors will be able to enjoy and learn from them," they added.

Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) led the letter. He was joined by Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine).

A group of 70 U.S. representatives, led by Reps. Tony Cárdenas and Carolyn Maloney sent a similar letter earlier this month.