Kennedy Center board votes to return Trump's name to building, continue with 2-year closure
Vote to add 'Restored and Renovated by President Donald J. Trump' to façade tests ruling by federal judge
The battle over the Kennedy Center's future escalated Thursday as U.S. President Donald Trump's allies on the board took new steps to commemorate him with physical changes to the iconic performing arts institution that could defy a federal court order.
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that → vote → order
During an hours-long meeting that was conducted virtually, the board voted to add Trump's name to the building's façade so it would read "The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Restored and Renovated By President Donald J. Trump."
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it → conduct → Trump
The plaza in front of the building would be named after Trump and most of the space at the venue would be closed for two years to allow for substantial renovations.
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most → name → renovations
The changes, described by Representative Joyce Beatty, an Ohio Democrat who is an ex-officio board member, and her lawyers, amount to a dramatic test of U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper.
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who → describe → Cooper
Cooper ruled in May that letters affixed to the building that spelled out Trump's name were added illegally, and he ordered their removal, a decision that the Republican administration failed to persuade courts to overturn.
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administration → rule → courts
At the same time, Cooper blocked a two-year closure that was set to take effect July 5, saying an earlier board vote authorizing the shuttering was "ill-informed and seemingly preordained.
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vote → block → shuttering
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"This latest development is a transparent effort to circumvent the Court's ruling, and flies in the face of the statutes that Congress passed," Beatty said in a statement.
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Beatty → circumvent → statement
"I will continue to fight for this treasured national monument."
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I → continue → monument
A representative of the Kennedy Center did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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representative → respond → comment
Much of Thursday's board meeting was expected to focus on the extent of closures required to allow for renovations that the Kennedy Center's management says are needed to improve safety.
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management → expect → safety
In response to the judge's criticism of the earlier vote, the institution's leaders said they would provide the board with three options to consider.
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they → say → options
They included a complete closure or a partial closure that would allow "some continued public access and limited programming in spaces unaffected" by the work.
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that → include → work
A third option would "consider a highly limited series of phased closures to address only the Center's most serious infrastructure needs while scheduling and maintaining a full slate of programming."
Ultimately, the board decided to close the building for two years while leaving the potential for some degree of programming to still happen in an outdoor space known as the Reach.
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degree → consider → Reach
The decision to move ahead with the two-year closure, in addition to the moves to memorialize Trump, could revive questions about whether the board seriously considered the full range of options.
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board → move → options
Trump's push to remake U.S. capital
During Trump's second term, the Kennedy Center has become an unlikely — and highly visible — metaphor of presidential power.
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Center → remake → power
While he largely ignored the institution during his first round in Washington, Trump moved quickly to oust the institution's leadership when he returned to office in January 2025 and replaced it with a board of trustees that named him chairman.
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that → ignore → him
His name was quickly added to the building, before coming down in June in response to Cooper's order.
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name → add → order
The area where it once stood is now covered by a massive tarp.
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it → stand → tarp
The Kennedy Center moves are part of Trump's broader push to reshape the physical landscape of the nation's capital in ways that have few modern parallels.
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that → reshape → parallels
He demolished the East Wing of the White House and is building a controversial ballroom in its place, though an appeals court ruled last week that construction should stop because Congress didn't approve the project.
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Congress → demolish → project
Trump has said he will take the case to the Supreme Court.
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he → say → Court
- Podcast
Trump signs executive order to push for the rewrite of U.S. history
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Trump → sign → history
- Video
Workers remove Trump's name from Kennedy Center
His remodel of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool has also stumbled after algae returned and U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro refuted his claims that a vandal was responsible for the damage.
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vandal → remove → damage
Meanwhile, Trump is planning extensive renovations of a golf course in East Potomac Park, which could significantly reduce the public's access to running and biking paths.
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which → plan → paths
He is also moving forward with a triumphal arch that will sit near Arlington National Cemetery.
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that → move → Cemetery
Trump has derided the Kennedy Center as "rusted, rotted, and rat and bug infested" and threatened to hand the building over to Congress after Cooper rejected the closure and the addition of the president's name to the building.
Kennedy Center leaders say building needs repairs
The institution's leadership has argued that it's in genuine need of repair and updating.
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it → deride → repair
Matt Floca, the Kennedy Center's executive director and chief operating officer, guided a group of journalists through the building in April, highlighting severe water damage that he said corroded steel as thin as tissue paper in some places.
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he → guide → places
Some pieces of equipment, including several 800-ton chillers that help cool the building, are decades old and in need of replacement.
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that → include → replacement
What happened?
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What → happen → ?
Trump, without substantiation, blames reflecting pool renovation woes on vandalism
At the time, Floca said he considered doing the repairs individually, but insisted it was his recommendation to Trump to close the building and move forward with the renovation all at once.
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it → blame → renovation
"When the president asked: 'How do you make these projects the best? How do you make them really excellent and deliver them efficiently?' my recommendation was you close the building and you do everything over a definite period of time, two years," he said.
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he → ask → time
More recently, the legal battles became the subject of barbs and jokes as comedian Bill Maher accepted the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in late June.
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Maher → become → June
At the start of the program, Pamella Roland DeVos, a Kennedy Center trustee appointed by Trump, described the institution as a "national cultural center open not just for some but for every American patron who wants to experience the greatest art and expression the world has to offer.
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world → appoint → art
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"The responsibility that comes with it is one our board takes very seriously," she said.
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she → come → it
