The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library was shuttered on Tuesday with little to no warning after five operations-essential and revenue generating positions were eliminated in line with the Trump administration’s actions to reduce the size of the federal workforce, the JFK Library confirmed to TSTV News. The library has since reopened with reduced staff.
The LBJ Foundation, which supports the LBJ Presidential Library and UT’s LBJ School of Public Affairs, said in a statement Wednesday that the library has not been affected by budgetary or staffing changes – yet.
“The LBJ Presidential Library continues to operate as usual, with no changes to its processes and procedures at this time,” the statement said. “While broader federal budgetary decisions may impact institutions nationwide, we remain committed to preserving and sharing President Lyndon B. Johnson’s legacy with the public.”
On the LBJ Foundation website, a banner across the top encourages visitors and students to apply for research positions at the library, which it says are funded by the Foundation, and is therefore “not subject to federal executive orders.”
The changes to the JFK Library affected probationary employees, which are federal employees that have been in their position usually for less than a year and are not subject to the same civil service protections as those not in a probationary period. Notably, this means the employee has been in their current position for less than a year, not that they have been at the agency or workplace for less than a year. High level career civil servants with decades of expertise that have recently taken on a promotion have also been affected.
The National Archives and Records Administration, which oversees the Office of Presidential Libraries, has not yet responded to requests for comment. Additional questions were referred to the NARA.
Probationary employees have been targeted for layoffs by the thousands across federal agencies and departments in the last week, including employees researching the growing bird flu epidemic and experts overseeing the nation’s nuclear weapons programs. The cuts, enacted by the Office of Personnel Management, intend to reduce federal spending and cut down on “waste, fraud and abuse.” However, little evidence has been provided as to how positions are being selected for cuts, with firing decisions being walked back after public outcries.
Massachusetts leaders have reacted to the closure with outrage and confusion. Former Congressman Joe Kennedy III, the grand nephew of the library’s namesake, spoke on the closure of the library to WBZ News in Boston.
“When we start shutting down libraries in the name of government efficiency, we’ve got a problem,” Kennedy said. “You can’t keep shooting first, asking questions later. … There are hundreds of thousands of people around the world that are going hungry because of the lack of programs and assistance that the United States has pushed out for decades across a bipartisan basis. Interestingly enough, USAID was founded by President Kennedy … all on the chopping block in the name of tax cuts for the wealthy.”
