Senior Justice Department officials tapped by Trump to run Library of Congress are denied access
The Library of Congress is seen here in August 2024
By Paula Reid, Casey Gannon and Michael Williams, CNN
(CNN) — Two senior Justice Department officials appointed by President Donald Trump to run the Library of Congress were denied access on Monday, according to a person familiar with the interaction.
Paul Perkins and Brian Nieves are expected to hold positions at the Library of Congress, according to the DOJ. Perkins will serve as acting register of copyrights in addition to his role as associate deputy attorney general, and Nieves will fill the role as acting deputy librarian of Congress as well as serving as chief of staff for Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche.
Around 9 a.m. Monday, Nieves and Perkins showed up to the US Copyright Office in Washington with a letter announcing Blanche was being appointed to serve as acting librarian of Congress. They had a separate email outlining their appointments.
The men “were not allowed into offices” and left later Monday morning, the person said. The person added that the Library of Congress, which is a legislative-branch agency, has not received direction from Congress on how to move forward.
CNN has reached out to the Justice Department for comment on the letter and the interaction.
As librarian of Congress, Blanche will replace Carla Hayden, who was fired by the White House last week. Hayden had served in the position since 2016 and had about a year and half left in her 10-year-term. She was the first woman and first Black person to serve in the role.
The librarian of Congress is a position that requires presidential appointment followed by Senate confirmation. The librarian has several duties, including overseeing the more than 178 million items in the library’s collection.
Blanche represented Donald Trump during his 2024 criminal hush money trial, which ended with the then-former president being found guilty on 34 felony counts.
Rep. Joe Morelle, a New York Democrat, on Monday called the firing of the librarian of Congress and removal of the Copyright Office director an “assault on Congressional authority and independence.”
“I’ve asked the LOC Inspector General to investigate potential improper access to confidential congressional data,” Morelle wrote on X.
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