CREW and American Oversight file PRA complaint against Trump

CREW and American Oversight sent a letter to White House Counsel Don McGahn today requesting he take the necessary steps to ensure that all presidential records are preserved and that the Trump Administration fully complies with the Presidential Records Act (PRA).

According to recent reports, Trump regularly rips up papers once he is done with them, regardless of their status as presidential records. After realizing that the documents had to be preserved as presidential records, White House aides started collecting the fragments of paper from both the Oval Office and the personal residence to be taped together. According to Politico, the very staffers who were charged with restoring the documents were recently fired from the White House.

The Presidential Records Act vests the president and his staff with the solemn responsibility of preserving our nation’s history. President Trump’s actions place the records of his presidency and that history at risk and, indeed, may violate the law. For these reasons, CREW and American Oversight respectfully request that Don McGahn act as quickly as possible to restore order and certainty to the records management practices of the White House, and to guard against the permanent and irreparable loss of valuable historical records.