Trump’s firing of the U.S. government archivist is far worse than it might seem
The National Archives and Records Administration does more than just preserve documents: It’s the scaffolding of the American political system. Trump’s firing of the U.S. government archivist is far worse than it might seem.
BY Jared Keller, 5 minute read
Amid his dramatic reshaping of the federal government, President Donald Trump’s latest high-profile dismissal could become among his most consequential. On Feb. 7, Trump fired Colleen Shogan from her role as Archivist of the United States, the head of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) and government official responsible for overseeing the preservation—both physical and digital—and promulgation of government records.
Shogan’s dismissal marks the first time that a sitting president has fired the nation’s archivist since the position was established in the 1930s. “This evening, President Trump fired me. No cause or reason was cited,” Shogan said in a statement on her LinkedIn at the time. “It has been an honor serving as the 11th Archivist of the United States. I have zero regrets – I absolutely did my best every day for the National Archives and the American people.”
The dismissal wasn’t exactly unexpected. The New York Times reports that Trump had grown to “despise” the agency for its role in alerting the Department of Justice (DOJ) in 2022 to his alleged misappropriation and mishandling of classified documents at his Florida estate of Mar-a-Lago following his first term in office—a case a federal judge dismissed in July of last year. (His ire extended to Shogan despite her not assuming the Archivist post until 2023, months after the agency alerted the DOJ.) Referral Source: Library Link of the Day http://www.tk421.net/librarylink/ (archive, rss, subscribe options)
