An unfulfilled request from Donald Trump forces the director of the Eisenhower Presidential Museum in Kansas, Todd Arrington, to resign.
The bone of contention between him and the White House chief of staff was a sword belonging to former President Dwight Eisenhower, which is kept in this museum, which Trump requested to be given to King Charles III during his visit to the United Kingdom from September 16 to 18.
The director rejected the request, which had not come directly from the president, but from the gifts unit on behalf of the US State Department.
After refusing, administration officials gave him an ultimatum to resign or face dismissal. Arrington resigned on Monday, but is trying to get back into his job by contacting his superiors at the United States National Archives.
Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States from 1953 to 1961, but previously during World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in Europe, playing a major role in defeating Nazi fascism.
The State Department had considered this gift precisely to underscore the importance of the relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom. It was rejected by the head of the presidential library.
During the visit, Trump presented the royal family with a replica of Eisenhower's sword.
It is suspected that the original sword requested by the president is the one that was given to the former American president in 1947 by the leaders of the city of London, as a reward for his contribution as commander of the Anglo-American allied troops in the final years of World War II.