Democrats press Trump on Copyright Office chief's removal

A half dozen Senate Democrats are pressing President Trump over his firing of the head of the U.S. Copyright Office, arguing that the move is illegal. 

“It threatens the longstanding independence and integrity of the Copyright Office, which plays a vital role in our economy,” the members said in the letter. “You are acting beyond your power and contrary to the intent of Congress as you seek to erode the legal and institutional independence of offices explicitly designed to operate outside the reach of partisan influence.” 

The letter came after the Trump administration fired Shira Perlmutter from her position, which she has held since 2020. 

Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), the ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Intellectual Property Subcommittee, sent the letter, which the other Democratic members of the subcommittee and Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) also signed. The other signers were Sens. Maizie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and Peter Welch (D-Vt.). 

The senators said the librarian of Congress has the sole authority to appoint and remove the register of copyrights, though Trump has also fired Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden, who appointed Perlmutter. 

They said Congress gave the responsibility of appointing the register to the librarian to ensure the Copyright Office remains a nonpartisan body without political influence. 

The head of the Copyright Office is responsible for shaping federal copyright policy, and the senators argued the role is particularly crucial as the country confronts issues concerning the intersection of copyright law and technologies like artificial intelligence. 

They mentioned that Perlmutter’s firing came after the office published a report raising doubts on the ability of training artificial intelligence models using copyrighted materials. They said it “raises grave concerns that your Administration moved to remove Ms. Perlmutter to satisfy commercial or political interests.” 

The senators called on the administration to immediately reinstate Perlmutter and Hayden, as it would restore public confidence in the Library of Congress and affirm the Copyright Office’s independence. 

Both Hayden and Perlmutter had faced scrutiny from a conservative nonprofit called the American Accountability Foundation that called for them to lose their positions. 

They are the latest of several other officials of government offices and agencies that Trump has fired, including the acting head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the vice chair of the National Transportation Safety Board.