The U.S. Copyright Office informed the outlet that Perlmutter had received an email from the White House, which stated, \u201cYour position as the Register of Copyrights and Director at the U.S. Copyright Office is terminated, effective immediately.\u201d<\/p>\n
Days prior, Trump dismissed Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden. Her removal was considered part of the administration\u2019s broader effort to replace officials viewed as resistant to Trump\u2019s agenda.<\/p>\n
Hayden appointed Shira Perlmutter to head the Copyright Office in October 2020. According to The Associated Press, both Hayden and Perlmutter were informed of their dismissals via email.<\/p>\n
\u201cCarla,\u201d the letter to Hayden began. \u201cOn behalf of President Donald J. Trump, I am writing to inform you that your position as the Librarian of Congress is terminated effective immediately. Thank you for your service,\u201d it added.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, a USAID employee responsible for overseeing agency contracts created a fictitious company to obtain coronavirus relief funds for personal gain illegally, federal prosecutors announced Friday.<\/p>\n
\u201cYusuf Akoll worked as a Senior Procurement Contract Specialist at the U.S. Agency for International Development,\u201d according to a previously unreported court document. \u201cFrom at least in or around March 2021, and continuing through at least in or around August 2021, Akoll [made] materially false, fictitious, and fraudulent statements\u2026that resulted in Akoll receiving two [Paycheck Protection Program] loans totaling approximately $16,666 that he was not entitled to receive.\u201d<\/p>\n
Prosecutors allege that in November 2020, Akoll registered a company in Virginia named Naagode Consulting LLC and then applied for a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan under the federal COVID-19 relief program. He claimed to be employed by Naagode and stated the funds were needed to avoid layoffs.<\/p>\n
However, eligibility for the program required businesses to be operational as of February 2020, prompting Akoll to falsely list the company\u2019s start date as January 2020. To justify the loan, he also claimed the company earned $40,000 in 2019, despite it having no income at all, according to prosecutors.<\/p>\n
Akoll was charged with making false statements in Washington, D.C., federal court through an \u201cinformation,\u201d a filing that typically indicates a plea agreement is in the works, the Daily Wire reported.<\/p>\n