In what can only be described as a monumental toddler temper tantrum, the White Housse has said that unless the illegal name is returned to the Kennedy Center, the iconic performance center will be demolished!
After the hostile takeover in February 2025, there was a mass exodus of artists and cancelled performances that led to a dramatic reduction in ticket sales, donor contributions, and patron subscriptions that left the Kennedy Center coffers severely compromised.
The Kennedy Center is currently months late in releasing the “independently audited financial statements”; but a spokesperson for The Center claims any financial issues are due to the previous administration and that the current budget is “balanced”.
However, Justice Department lawyers are trying to argue that the addition of an illegal name is essential to gaining funding and support for a major renovation of the Kennedy Center saying, “the decrepit, dilapidated, crumbling venue cannot be saved.”
Congress – who is in charge of all aspects of the Kennedy Center from naming to renovations – has already appropriated $257 million for repairs and restoration of the venue; however, DOJ lawyers are saying an additional $100 million is needed and the current White House resident is essential in soliciting the funding. Incidentally, last week the Kennedy Center board – a group of hand picked loyalists installed after the hostile takeover – voted to add the illegal name as the person responsible for the renovations and an additional dedication on the plaza if the $100 million goal is met.
In an August 25 filing, the DOJ lawyers said, “the crisis is so acute that, without the Trump Administration, its people, and President Trump, the Center cannot survive, either structurally or financially. The bottom line is this: Even (Rep Joyce) Beatty should prefer a healthy, restored Center to a decaying hulk that is doomed to inevitable destruction or collapse.”
They added, “without those efforts, the Center will deteriorate further into an unsafe, decrepit structure that will be required to be taken down, with a determination to follow on what to build on the site, such as a large outdoor amphitheater overlooking the Potomac River that has been proposed, by some, for many years.”
Claiming the name additions do not violate the 1964 statute passed by Congress, the lawyers said, instead, the inscriptions only describe President Trump’s role as the one responsible for the Center’s renovation and restoration.”
Representative Beatty has other thoughts saying, “it bears emphasis: On the law, the latest renaming resolution is a breathtaking act of defiance. Moreover, the Board has determined to add the specific term ‘Trump Kennedy Center’ back onto the building – a jawdropping flouting of this Court’s prohibition on use of that specific term.”