Since returning to office in January, Trump has purged officials he regards as opposed to him and to his agenda. Hayden, nominated by President Barack Obama in 2015 and confirmed on a 74-18 Senate vote the following year, named Perlmutter as head of the Copyright Office in 2020.

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche would assume the acting role days after Trump fired Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden nine years into her 10-year term.