Why Statues Taken Down in 2020 Are Coming Back

Summary

WSJ What’s News (June 4, 2026)

Episode: Why Statues Taken Down in 2020 Are Coming Back

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Episode Overview

This episode of WSJ What’s News explores the resurgence of America’s “statue wars.” After a wave of removals during the protests of 2020, a new push—led in part by traditionalists and even the Trump White House—is restoring controversial monuments to public spaces. The episode delves into why these statues are reemerging, who’s behind the movement, and how the battle lines and tactics have shifted since 2020. The episode also covers the latest headlines, including turmoil in private credit markets, calls inside Russia to end the war in Ukraine, and legislative wrangling in Washington.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Private Credit Volatility & Blackstone's BCred Fund

• Blackstone’s BCred Fund Under Pressure: Investors are seeking to redeem $4.4 billion in the second quarter, up from $3.5 billion the previous quarter (00:41).
  • "Blackstone says everything's fine... They are saying they have plenty of money, that investors that want their money will get it back, just not as quickly as they want..." — Matt Wurtz, 01:19
  • While Blackstone insists there's no insolvency issue, defaults are rising.
• Industry Implications: If a “blue chip” name like Blackstone is facing pressure, the stress is likely even greater for other funds (01:49).
  • "If the number of their investors that are asking for their money back is going up, if the best in the industry is facing this, then it's only a bigger risk for everybody else." — Matt Wurtz, 01:49

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2. Market Movements and Global Tensions

• Stock Market: Healthcare and financial stocks fuel a rally; Dow closes up 900 points, while tech lags after Broadcom’s disappointing AI guidance (02:10).
• Russia’s War in Ukraine:
  • Unprecedented: Some Russian insiders are calling for an end to the war as momentum shifts and Ukrainian strikes intensify (03:03).
    • “These are people who have very little love for the Ukrainian government. However, they're speaking out now just because it's clear that the momentum of the war has changed...” — Yaroslav Trofimov, 03:03
    • Not liberals or original antiwar activists; their critique stems from patriotism—not pacifism—making the calls more significant (04:22).
    • “For this regime, war is really muros vivendi. As a former Ukrainian foreign minister... told me, it's like riding a bicycle. If you stop, you fall.” — Yaroslav Trofimov, 03:47
  • No major government crackdowns since critics are framing their arguments carefully (04:22).
• Middle East Update: Israel-Lebanon ceasefire already under strain. Hezbollah insists attacks will continue until full Israeli withdrawal (04:49).

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3. Washington Politics: The Anti-Weaponization Fund & DOJ Nominee

• Senate Battle: $70B immigration bill is delayed by a GOP fight over ending a $1.8B Trump-era anti-weaponization fund (06:18).
  • Sen. Thom Tillis pushes to officially end the fund, though the Trump administration has already moved away from it (06:45).
    • “This administration has said they're not moving forward with it. This is an opportunity for us to put it to bed.” — Cameron McWhirter, 06:45
• DOJ Nominee: Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, soon to be officially nominated by Trump, faces bipartisan criticism over the fund and must navigate confirmation hearings (07:39).

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4. Statue Wars Return: Why and How Monuments Are Coming Back

Where Have the Statues Been Since 2020?

• Many were stored; some destroyed (e.g., Columbus statue in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor).
• Most languished in warehouses, packed away and out of public view (08:36).
  • "For example, a very large statue of Christopher Columbus that was removed from the City hall of Columbus, Ohio. It is in a city warehouse on its back with yellow caution tape around it." — Cameron McWhirter, 08:36

Key Cases of Returned Monuments (09:09)

• Texas Ranger Statue:
  • Removed due to alleged association with segregation; now reinstalled at the Texas Rangers baseball stadium, sparking a renewed controversy.
    • "That person was sent to schools that were being desegregated. And it is alleged that he took the side of the segregationists." — Cameron McWhirter, 09:09
• Robert E. Lee Highway Marker: Removed, now back in public view.
• Each case revives debate about the meaning and history such statues convey.

The Political Shift: From Street Protests to Legal and Institutional Battles (10:54)

• Unlike 2020, there are no mass protests—it’s now a primarily legal and political fight.
• Trump administration is active in restoring certain statues on federal land (11:00-11:30).
  • Example:
    • "The statue that was thrown into Baltimore, Inner harbor of Columbus, a replica of that is now in front of a federal building in Washington, D.C. on display." — Cameron McWhirter, 11:30

What Drives the New Push?

• “Traditionalists” feel the removals were an overreaction and are mobilizing to restore the monuments via lawsuits and lobbying.
• The opposition remains muted or focused on legal means rather than mass mobilization.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Russia’s War Stalemate:
  “For this regime, war is really muros vivendi. As a former Ukrainian foreign minister, Pavlov Klimkin told me, it's like riding a bicycle. You know, if you stop, you fall.” — Yaroslav Trofimov, 03:47
• On Statue Storage:
  "A very large statue of Christopher Columbus... is in a city warehouse on its back with yellow caution tape around it." — Cameron McWhirter, 08:36
• On Changing Tactics:
  “It's moved to a legal and political battle. And that is a very different fight. And so far, the traditionalists have the upper hand.” — Cameron McWhirter, 10:59
• On Return of Columbus Statue:
  "A replica of that [Columbus statue] is now in front of a federal building in Washington, D.C. on display." — Cameron McWhirter, 11:30

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Timestamps of Important Segments

• 00:41 - 02:00: Private credit market volatility and Blackstone’s troubles
• 03:00 - 04:49: Russian insiders calling for end to war; regime dynamics and public impact
• 06:18 - 07:39: Senate battle over Trump’s anti-weaponization fund, DOJ nominee
• 07:53 - 08:36: Recap of 2020 statue removals and aftermath
• 08:36 - 10:54: What happened to statues & key cases (Columbus, Texas Ranger, Lee marker)
• 10:54 - 11:45: Traditionalists’ political/legal campaigns; federal restoration efforts

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Conclusion

This episode highlights how the debate over historical monuments, once waged in the streets, has become a contentious legal and political battle, reshaping the physical and symbolic landscape of American cities in the process. The “statue wars” remain deeply tied to national politics, collective memory, and the current administration’s priorities, and are symptomatic of broader cultural tensions that continue to animate American public life.

Transcript

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[Danny Lewis]

Turmoil in private credit continues with investors wanting more of their money back from the industry's biggest fund. Plus, some members of the Russian establishment have started calling for President Vladimir Putin to end the war with Ukraine.

[Yaroslav Trofimov]

These are people who have very little love for the Ukrainian government. However, they're speaking out now just because it's clear that the momentum of the

[Danny Lewis]

war has changed and a wave of cities across the US took down contentious statues in 2020. Now some of them are getting put back up. It's Thursday, June 4th. I'm Danny Lewis for the Wall Street Journal, filling in for Alex Osolo. This is the PM edition of what's News. The the top headlines and business stories that move the world today. Investors are trying to pull billions of dollars out of the biggest private credit fund in the world, Blackstone's B cred. The fund's investors asked to redeem 10% of their shares in the second quarter. That amounts to $4.4 billion, up from the first quarter when investors asked for 8% of their shares.

[Matt Wurtz]

Blackstone says everything's fine. They are saying they have plenty of money, that investors that want their money will get it back, just not as quickly as they want, and that the overall performance of their loans that they invest in, that those loans are doing fine. You know, in general, I think that's right. However, on the margin, what we're seeing is that more of those loans are starting to default.

[Danny Lewis]

That's Matt Wurtz, who covers credit for the WSJ's Finance Bureau. He says managers of large private credit funds face growing financial strain from their investors.

[Matt Wurtz]

Blackstone is like the blue chip name, like if JP Morgan is like the blue chip of banks like Blackstone is the benchmark for private credit and private equity funds. So if the number of their investors that are asking for their money back is going up, if the best in the industry is facing this, then it's only a bigger risk for everybody else.

[Danny Lewis]

In stock markets, a rally in health care and financial stocks helped push the Dow sharply higher today. The index closed up almost 900 points, or about 1.7%. Meanwhile, tech stocks lagged after chip and software maker Broadcom's guidance on AI demand fell short of investor expectations. It dropped 12.6%, and the Nasdaq ended the day slightly lower, while the S and P rose 0.4%. We go now to Russia, which has fallen into a long stalemate on the front lines of the war in Ukraine. Significant voices in the Russian political establishment are now starting to publicly call for an end to the conflict. But there's a big question here. Will President Vladimir Putin listen? We're joined now by the Journal's chief foreign affairs correspondent, Yaroslav Trofimov Yarov, who are some of the people in the Russian establishment now calling for an end to the war.

[Yaroslav Trofimov]

So you hear it from people like Oleg Tsareov, who used to be a parliament member in Ukraine before fleeing to Russia. And then he was President Putin's top candidate to lead a puppet regime that Russia planned to install in Ukraine. Or you have people like Vasily Kashin, who is a top analyst and prominent think tanker in Russia. So he wrote a piece in Russia's foremost foreign policy journal also arguing that Russia really has no path to victory in Ukraine. These are people who have very little love for the Ukrainian government. However, they're speaking out now just because it's clear that the momentum of the war has changed. Ukraine has been able to stop Russia. Russia advances by and large. And at the same time, Ukraine's drones and missiles have been able to strike throughout Russia. We saw the strike on the port of St. Petersburg this week. Justice, Russia's main economic conference with lots of foreign guests was about to start. A lot of people that I talk to who are watching Russia very closely are very skeptical that President Putin will actually listen because for this regime, war is really Muros vivendi. As a former Ukrainian foreign minister, Pavlov Klimkin told me, it's like riding a bicycle. You know, if you stop, you fall.

[Danny Lewis]

Have there been any repercussions for the people who are arguing to end the war in Ukraine?

[Yaroslav Trofimov]

Well, not really, because they're all couching this in very patriotic language and they're all saying, we supported the war. It's just we understand that now it's going to be difficult. So these are not liberals. Those are not people who were protesting against the war four years ago when the war began. And that is why, actually, their words are influential among some parts of the Russian society. Because these are the people who want Russia to win in Ukraine, and they're just saying it can't right now.

[Danny Lewis]

That was WSJ chief foreign affairs correspondent Yaroslav Trofimov. And elsewhere in the world, Israel and Lebanon renewed their ceasefire just yesterday. It's already under strain. Today, Israel and Hezbollah exchanged fire. And Israel says it will continue its offensive in Lebanon's south. In a speech today, Hezbollah's leader said the group would only stop its attacks after a full withdrawal of Israeli forces. The deal calls for the disarmament of Hezbollah and for the Lebanese military to take control across the country. But a Lebanese military official said the army hasn't gotten any orders yet to reassert itself in the south of the country. It remains unclear how the ceasefire will be implemented. Coming up, we've got the latest news from Washington. Republican division over President Trump's anti weaponization fund spills onto the Senate floor while Trump names his next nominee to lead the Justice Department. That's after the break. So good, so good, so good.

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[Danny Lewis]

The Senate is voting today on a $70 billion bill funding immigration enforcement. That is a priority for President Trump and Republicans, but the measure has been delayed by an internal GOP fight over legislation that would officially kill President Trump's $1.8 billion anti weaponization fund. The fund's opponents dragged action on the Senate floor to a halt for hours today. Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who is retiring, pushed for amendments blocking the fund.

[Cameron McWhirter]

This administration has said they're not moving forward with it. This is an opportunity for us to

[Matt Wurtz]

put it to bed.

[Danny Lewis]

But while many Senate Republicans opposed the fund, few appeared willing to insist on language ending it in exchange for supporting the immigration bill. While the Trump administration has retreated from the fund, the Justice Department is considering other means to pay allies of the president who claim they were politically targeted by the federal government. And the $1.8 billion fund could continue to be a headache for acting Attorney General Todd Blanche after President Trump said he'll nominate Blanche to run the Justice Department. Blanche has been serving in the role on a temporary basis since Pam Bondi was fired in April. He's faced backlash from both Democrats and Republicans in the Senate over the fund, the same lawmakers whose votes he'll need to be confirmed as attorney general. Talking to reporters today in Ohio, Blanche said he has good relationships with Senate lawmakers, so I'm looking forward to working

[Matt Wurtz]

with the senators and getting them the information they need through the confirmation process.

[Danny Lewis]

Six years ago, it was the depths of The COVID pandemic. And nationwide, people were protesting police violence and racism following George Floyd's murder in Minneapolis in 2020. And cities across the US were responding by removing statues and monuments commemorating Confederate generals, founding fathers, and European explorers.

[Matt Wurtz]

Tear them down. Tear them down.

[Danny Lewis]

Now the statue wars are back. Traditionalists are suing and lobbying local governments to return the memorials to public spaces. WSJ national affairs reporter Cameron McWhirter has been covering this push. He joins us now. Cameron, my first thought here was, where have these statues been for the last six years? But what happened to them after they were removed from public view?

[Cameron McWhirter]

Some were destroyed. There's one at the bottom of Baltimore's Inner Harbor, a statue of Columbus. But a lot of the statues were put into storage. For example, a very large statue of Christopher Columbus that was removed from the City hall of Columbus, Ohio. It is in a city warehouse on its back with yellow caution tape around it. So a lot of them have just been sitting around out of public view. And traditionalists are wanting to get these statues back up and in some cases are starting to win.

[Danny Lewis]

What are some of the other monuments that people are pushing to restore?

[Cameron McWhirter]

So there was a statue of a Texas Ranger that had stood at a airport in Dallas for a long time, and it was believed to be modeled after a particular person who was a very prominent Texas ranger in the 50s and 60s. And that person was sent to schools that were being desegregated. And it is alleged that he took the side of the segregationists. Now, that is in dispute, but that is why the statue was taken away.

[Danny Lewis]

But wasn't it supposed to be a monument to the Texas Rangers in general?

[Cameron McWhirter]

Yes. The statue is entitled One Riot, One Ranger, and it refers to this particular event from a long, long time ago in which apparently one Texas Ranger stopped a riot by himself. That is sort of what it's supposed to be. Others argue that it's based on this particular person and that it brings up a lot of ugly history in Texas. So there were calls for that statue to be removed, and it was. And it sat in storage for years. It has just reappeared at the Texas Ranger baseball team stadium, causing a furor with people calling for that statue to be removed, and it's divisive, and other people saying it never should have been taken away in the first place. There was a highway marker that's a tribute to Robert E. Lee, the Confederate general, and that monument was removed and it's now back. Everybody looks at a statue and they're going to see something different about what that thing represents to them. And we saw that in 2020, and now we're seeing it again. You know, these statues were quickly removed by a lot of communities who didn't want crisis or dissension or vandalism, and they shuttled them off to warehouses, etc. And now people want them back because they were angry that they were removed.

[Danny Lewis]

What's been the response from the people who pushed to remove these monuments in the first place?

[Cameron McWhirter]

Strangely muted. For now, we don't have the crowds and the protesters that we had in 2020. So it's moved to a legal and political battle. And that is a very different fight. And so far, the traditionalists have the upper hand. And this is led in large part by the Trump White House. They have brought back statues. For example, the statue that was thrown into Baltimore, Inner harbor of Columbus, a replica of that is now in front of a federal building in Washington, D.C. on display there is a statue of a founding father who was a slave owner that was taken down in Wilmington, Delaware, is now up in Washington.

[Danny Lewis]

Thanks to the White House WSJ national affairs reporter Cameron McWhorter. Thanks for joining us.

[Cameron McWhirter]

Yeah, thanks for having me.

[Danny Lewis]

And that's what's news for this Thursday afternoon. Today's show was produced by Anthony Banci with supervising producer Talia. I'm Danny Lewis for the Wall Street Journal. We'll be back with a new show tomorrow morning. Thanks for listening.

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