National Archives Launches Trump Presidential Library Website
WASHINGTON – The National Archives and Records Administration launched the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library website on Wednesday in an effort to provide the public with information on archived White House websites and social media accounts, as well as information on access to the records of the Trump Administration.
Under the Presidential Records Act, the National Archives will receive all records of the Trump Administration, which will be preserved in NARA facilities in the Washington, D.C., area, and access to those records will be provided through the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library, controlled and administered by the National Archives.
The Trump Library will be part of the National Archives’ Presidential Libraries system, which, under the Presidential Libraries Act, established a system of privately constructed and federally maintained presidential libraries, going back to President Hoover’s administration.
In a written statement the National Archives said its presidential libraries “promote understanding of the presidency and the American experience. They preserve and provide access to historical materials, support research, and create interactive programs and exhibits that educate and inspire.”
The department noted it intends to house messages from several personal social media accounts since a “number of Trump administration officials, including President Trump, used personal accounts when conducting government business.”
“The National Archives will make the social media content from those designated accounts publicly available as soon as possible,” the department said on its website.
Regardless of whether a former president decides to build and donate an archival research facility and museum to NARA under the Presidential Libraries Act, the National Archives maintains the collection of presidential records created by the presidential administration as a presidential library.
In recent weeks, former President Donald Trump had been telling supporters and GOP donors that he wants to raise $2 billion for a presidential library and museum, and that it would likely be located in Florida.
It has been reported that Trump has also tapped Dan Scavino, his former social media director and White House deputy chief of staff for communications, to lead the effort.
Trump’s goal would far surpass the $500 million former President George W. Bush raised for his Presidential Center in Dallas and that former President Barack Obama has raised for his library in Chicago.
If completed, the Trump Library will be the fifteenth presidential library operated by the National Archives.