Opinion | The Trump Administration’s Data Purges Weaken America - The New York Times

"Researchers logging onto the website Data.gov in January discovered a digital void where roughly 2,000 data sets were once cataloged. No warning, no explanation — just the quiet deletion of knowledge. Not long after that, historical pages focused on Black soldiers vanished, as did a website about Jackie Robinson and, bizarrely, one about a plane with “gay” in its name.

President Trump’s administration has targeted information curated by government agencies, erasing vast swaths of knowledge. While database updates and website changes are routine, this is probably the first time Americans are witnessing deletion weaponized on a large scale as a political tool. These deletions undermine basic good government — and the historical record. Democratic governments need far more robust legal frameworks and safeguards for data that is essential to citizens’ well-being. Scientific practices may change, policies may shift, and history may be debated, but the record of government should endure, regardless of who holds power.

The administration is seemingly pursuing deletion as a means of control. “It’s kind of like leaving a weed,” Elon Musk said of destroying agencies — and their attendant records. “If you don’t remove the roots of the weed, then it is easy for the weed to grow back.” Mr. Trump has sacked the national archivist and put Secretary of State Marco Rubio in charge. Without separation of powers, the archives are at risk...."