- Trump-ordered mass firings of federal employees decimated the workforce at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. This led to the attraction closing on Tuesday, initially for an indefinite period, but it resumed operations on Wednesday.
The chaos over the Trump administration’s widespread firings has spread to the libraries of some former presidents.
Visitors to the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston on Tuesday found themselves being escorted out of the facility after the firing of five federal employees considered essential. The library and museum were then closed for an indefinite amount of time, but then reversed course and said they would reopen Wednesday, following pushback by members of the Kennedy family.
The library is run by the National Archives, which is why it was affected by the staff cuts. All totaled, the federal department oversees 16 presidential libraries, including the Reagan, Carter, and both Bush libraries. It also runs the Trump Library, which is expected to be built in Florida, and the forthcoming Biden Presidential Library.
“The sudden dismissal of federal employees at the JFK Library forced the museum to close today,” the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation said in a statement. “As the foundation that supports the JFK Library, we are devastated by this news and will continue to support our colleagues and the library.”
The Trump administration has ordered agencies to terminate trial and probationary staff, which could impact more than 220,000 workers. Five of the six workers at the Kennedy Library were fired because of their probationary status.
The Washington Post reports that no one left on staff knew how to use the ticketing system, which forced the decision to close the museum.