The ongoing saga concerning President Trump’s attempt to make radical and unlawful changes to the Kennedy Center has taken a new turn. After Rep. Joyce Beatty’s lawsuit against the administration’s unauthorized changes led to a new court order against Trump, the president’s allies are again threatening to shut the center down altogether if the president doesn’t get his way, and Trump is reportedly directing his anger at Beatty.
Trump-appointed board closes Kennedy Center after court again blocks name change
The latest developments in the ongoing saga over the fate of the Kennedy Center occurred Tuesday, when U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper issued a ruling blocking the latest attempt by the Kennedy Center’s governing board, dominated by appointees of President Trump, to add Trump’s name to the institution. Judge Cooper accused the president’s allies of attempting “linguistic gymnastics” to justify adding Trump’s name to the center despite legislation forbidding such a change without congressional approval and previous court injunctions against any further attempt to add Trump’s name. “Simply put, Defendants cannot install memorials for President Trump or anyone or anything else at the Kennedy Center without Congress’s blessing. The board resolution bucks a federal court order and a statute Congress enacted,” Cooper ruled.
After the ruling, the Trump-aligned board voted to shut down the Kennedy Center, with President Trump taking to social media to announce that “the Board of The Kennedy Center today agreed, almost unanimously, to close the Building for Safety reasons, and so that it can begin the process of Reconstruction” pending an appeal of Cooper’s ruling. Trump also threatened that if he did not win an appeal in U.S. Circuit Court or the Supreme Court, “the Reconstruction and the Renovation of The Kennedy Center will not take place.” True to his word on the issue, the New York Times reported that the Kennedy Center abruptly closed Tuesday, with Trump seemingly cancelling the planned $257 million renovation of the institution.
Rep. Beatty describes showdown with Trump during Kennedy Center board meeting
The “almost” unanimous decision of the Trump-aligned Kennedy Center board to close the institution came over the objection of Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio), a member of the board and the plaintiff in the lawsuit that led to Judge Cooper’s ruling. Beatty confirmed to CNN’s Kaitlan Collins that the board meeting was a contentious affair between herself and President Trump, who was appointed chairman of the board by his allies. Trump “threw a tantrum” after again having his plan to add his name to the Kennedy Center rebuffed. Beatty confirmed that Trump called her “incompetent,” a description which she then threw back at him.
Trump also said that he would blame Beatty “if the ceiling fell in” and killed someone at the center, leading Beatty to remind the president that people are dying because of his policies. “I was not going to let him get away with bullying me,” Beatty said of her confrontation with Trump.
Tuesday’s legal and political fireworks over the Kennedy Center are the latest developments in Trump’s attempts to dominate the institution since returning to the White House. Trump and his handpicked board members have repeatedly attempted to rename the center, with his name physically added to the building before being removed after a previous court order; the order also blocked a plan by Trump to close the center for two years while it undergoes renovations. Meanwhile, Trump has micromanaged the Kennedy Center, including by heavily influencing the celebrities acknowledged at the Kennedy Center Honors and even breaking with tradition to hosting the ceremony. Trump’s meddling has led to ratings for the honors event plummeting and many artists cancelling performances at the venue. Now, as Trump’s plans for the institution continue to be thwarted, many observers are worried that the president will carry through on a threat to demolish the building altogether if he doesn’t get his way.
Kerry Kennedy, a niece of President John F. Kennedy, has accused Trump of holding the center named after her uncle “hostage.” Given Trump’s track record, including the unilateral demolition of the East Wing of the White House, his threat to destroy the Kennedy Center is one to be taken seriously. While opponents of his moves watch for this extreme move, Rep. Beatty and the federal judge continue to stand up to the president as he attempts to unlawfully impose his name and will on a decades-old memorial and cultural institution.