President Joe Biden’s nominee to be the next U.S. archivist on Sept. 21 defended denigrating Republican presidents, while asserting that she can be nonpartisan if confirmed by the Senate.
Colleen Shogan, the head of the White House Historical Association who was an aide to former Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), was questioned by Sens. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) and Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) about her writings and social media posts during a confirmation hearing in Washington.
Reagan and Bush were both Republicans.
“How can we be assured that you will serve effectively in this nonpartisan role?” Portman wondered after reading portions of the article.
Shogan said that the article was aimed at showing how the presidents effectively communicated using “commonsense” language. She also said she stood by her career at the Congressional Research Service, the Library of Congress, and the historical association.
“And I invite anybody to talk to the people I have worked with for years in my nonpartisan government service,” she said.
Shogan has also posted on Twitter about then-President Donald Trump, including a missive on Jan. 5, 2020.
“Isn’t the next move a self-pardon?” Shogan wrote at the time.
That implied Trump committed criminal acts, Portman said.
While Shogan repeated that she would be apolitical if confirmed, Hawley wasn’t convinced.
“You wrote an article basically saying that Republican voters are stupid, that Republican presidents deliberately appeal to anti-intellectualism. You roll it all up in Republican populism, yet you’re trying to present yourself as a nonpartisan,” he said.
“In fact, you’re an extreme partisan, and your record shows that. You’re someone who has denigrated Republican presidents—every two-term Republican president since the Second World War and their voters in this lengthy article.”
Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) introduced Shogan, whom she called her friend.
“She has the knowledge, experience, energy, and depth of dedication to serve in this role,” Capito said. “I believe she would serve it very well.”
If confirmed by the Senate, Shogan would become the U.S. archivist, or the head of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).
NARA has increasingly been in the spotlight after making a referral to the Department of Justice in 2021 after receiving boxes of documents from Mar-a-Lago, Trump’s resort in Florida. The referral led to the raid executed last month by the FBI at the resort.
Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) asked if Shogan thought the matter should have been handled differently, on a voluntarily rather than legal basis.
Shogan said that she hasn’t been apprised of details of the process but that, in general, when missing or damaged records are being sought, the procedure is to have a voluntary exchange with the individuals who might hold them.
