New Archivist Nomination Stirs Controversy.

On April 8, 2004, U.S. President George W. Bush nominated historian Allen Weinstein to be archivist of the U.S. and head of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). Weinstein currently served as senior advisor at the International Foundation for Election Systems and was a founder and former president of the Center for Democracy. The move has garnered much controversy. The nomination caught the archivist community-off-guard, current NARA head John Carlin had indicated his intention to serve until July 2005. Archivists groups said they were not consulted about the nomination, as has been the custom. On April 14, 2004, a coalition of archives groups, led by the Society of American Archivists (SAA), released a statement relaying their concern about Weinstein's qualifications to be the archivist of the U.S., as well as questioning whether his nomination was politically motivated. Weinstein nomination has been sent to the U.S. Senate Governmental Affairs Committee for consideration. His critics have demanded that the committee hold a hearing on the nomination. Senior committee staff said it is too early in the process for any senators to have formed an opinion of Weinstein.