The nation's largest organization of historians and a government watchdog group are suing President Donald Trump and his administration, hoping a judge will order them to comply with a decades-old law requiring the preservation of presidential records.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Washington, DC, on April 6, challenges a recent Justice Department memorandum declaring the Presidential Records Act unconstitutional. The act, established more than 45 years ago in the wake of the Watergate crisis, demands all presidential administrations hand over their records at the end of their terms to the National Archives and Records Administration − known as the “nation’s record keeper” − for the benefit of the American public.

The American Historical Association, which says it has more than 10,000 members, and the watchdog American Oversight say in the filing that the case is "about the preservation of records that document our nation’s history, and whether the American people are able to access and learn from that history."

President Donald Trump showered former U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi with praise on social media April 2, 2026 — praise that might have suggested an honor, not a firing. The message instead marked the end of Bondi’s brief stint at the Justice Department, after barely a year on the job.

Former U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem was fired by the president on March 5, 2026, not long after lawmakers grilled her about her department’s massive spending.

President Donald Trump fired John Bolton as his national security adviser on Sept. 10, 2019, noting the two "disagreed strongly" on foreign policy matters.

President Donald Trump fired Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Nov. 7, 2018, after a year of intense scrutiny from the White House.

Sessions' exit, a resignation forced by Trump, was expected for weeks amid Trump's attacks over his attorney general's decision to recuse himself from the Justice Department’s inquiry into Russian meddling in the 2016 election.

After months of disputes with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, President Trump removed him on March 13, 2018, and nominated CIA Director Mike Pompeo to head the State Department.

Anthony Scaramucci was fired as White House Communications Director on July 31, 2017, just 11 days after the man known as "The Mooch" was hired, making it the shortest in White House history.