Library of Congress Staff Block Trump-Appointed Officials Access Amid Leadership Dispute

President Donald Trump's firing of Carla Hayden as head librarian of the Library of Congress and appointment of his former personal attorney Todd Blanche as acting librarian has led to a standoff with Library staff, who refused to recognize Blanche and blocked two Justice Department officials, Paul Perkins and Brian Nieves, from accessing the Library and Copyright Office. Staffers and the Library's General Counsel insisted that Congress must have input before recognizing any new leadership, highlighting the legislative branch's role in this process. Perkins and Nieves, both holding dual roles in the Justice Department, arrived with letters of appointment but were denied entry, emphasizing the ongoing dispute over executive and legislative authority. Democrats and legal experts have expressed concern about the Justice Department gaining oversight of the Library, a legislative agency, and called for greater scrutiny of the White House's actions. The firings of both Hayden and the Copyright Office director, Shira Perlmutter, followed criticism of their stances on issues like 'wokeness' and intellectual property protections, including a recent AI-related copyright report. This situation underscores constitutional tensions and raises questions about how the Library of Congress will be managed under Blanche, who notably represented Trump during his 2024 criminal trial.