XPost: alt.government.employees, sac.politics, alt.politics.republicans
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https://www.politico.com/news/2025/05/28/fired-copyright-chief-first- round-lawsuit-trump-00373611
A judge denied a request for reinstatement Wednesday from the ousted head
of the national copyright office, rejecting for now her claims that
President Donald Trump had no right to fire her.
Shira Perlmutter was fired as register of copyrights earlier this month,
an office housed inside the Library of Congress. In a suit filed in Washington’s federal court last week, she alleged that Trump and his subordinates overstepped in both naming a new Librarian of Congress — the
only official, she claims, that can hire and fire a copyright chief.
Perlmutter asked the court to issue a temporary restraining order keeping Trump’s appointees out of the Library of Congress and keeping her on the
job, but U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Kelly denied the motion from the
bench in a hearing Wednesday.
Perlmutter’s lawsuit names as lead plaintiff Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, whom Trump attempted to appoint as acting Librarian of Congress, alongside Trump and several other administration officials. Justice
Department lawyers representing Blanche & Co. asserted in a court filing
this week that the Library of Congress is “part of the Executive Branch
and is subject to presidential control.”
“The Library of Congress is not an autonomous organization free from
political supervision,” the lawyers wrote.
The White House argues that Trump has the authority to name an acting
librarian and register of copyrights who can serve temporarily under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act — much as the president can name acting
leaders for any other federal agency with a presidentially appointed and Senate-confirmed chief.
Key lawmakers on Capitol Hill, including some top Republicans, are
questioning that assertion, and it has created a standoff at the Library
of Congress over the attempted takeover.
Rep. Joe Morelle (D-N.Y.), the top Democrat on the House Administration Committee, said in a statement that the arguments in the recent
administration court filing amount to “unlawful and unconstitutional
efforts to wrest control of the Library and the Copyright Office from
Congress and the American people.”
“The law is clear,” Morelle said. “The Library of Congress is a
legislative branch agency, and the President has no authority to appoint
an Acting Librarian or meddle in the Library’s personnel decisions.”
In addition to attempting to install Blanche as acting librarian, Trump
also attempted to appoint Brian Nieves as acting assistant librarian and
Paul Perkins as acting register of copyrights, replacing Perlmutter as
director of the Copyright Office.
But Robert Randolph Newlen, who assumed the acting librarian role
immediately after Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden’s removal, appears to remain in control of the library, and Blanche has not been seen at the
library or sent communications to employees since the attempted takeover earlier this month.
While Kelly did not immediately grant Perlmutter’s request, her lawsuit
will continue. Kelly indicated he will hear arguments in the coming weeks
on whether to grant a preliminary injunction blocking Trump and Blanche
while the litigation plays out.
In the meantime, the leadership of the library and copyright office will
remain in limbo.
“If Mr. Blanche assumes the role of Acting Librarian of Congress, the
Executive Branch will gain access to reams of confidential information
that belongs to Congress and that Congress has zealously guarded from disclosure, as well as privately owned copyright deposits,” Perlmutter’s
lawyer wrote in a Tuesday filing.
Republican chairs of the House and Senate panels with oversight
responsibility of the library declined a request for comment.
Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), the top Democrat on the Senate Rules
Committee, called once again for Congress to take bipartisan action to
codify full congressional control of the library, condemning the
“unprecedented encroachment by the White House.”
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November 5, 2024 - Congratulations President Donald Trump. We look
forward to America being great again.
We live in a time where intelligent people are being silenced so that
stupid people won't be offended.
Every day is an IQ test. Some pass, some, not so much.
Thank you for cleaning up the disasters of the 2008-2017, 2020-2024 Obama
/ Biden / Harris fiascos, President Trump.
Under Barack Obama's leadership, the United States of America became the
The World According To Garp. Obama sold out heterosexuals for Hollywood
queer liberal democrat donors.
--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
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