Kennedy Center board votes again to close for renovations and inscribe Trump's name on facade
The Trump-controlled board of the Kennedy Center voted on August 13 to close the main building for two years of renovations and to inscribe Trump's name on the facade, defying a federal judge who blocked both moves in May.
Board votes for closure and inscription
The board of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts voted on Thursday, August 13, to close the institution's main building for two years of renovations, while keeping the newer Reach extension open for limited programming and as an active memorial to John F. Kennedy. The board also voted to add an inscription beneath the center's signage reading "Restored and Renovated by President Donald J. Trump." The New York Times first reported the vote, which was confirmed by Democratic Representative Joyce Beatty of Ohio, a board member, and lawyers.
The votes represent the second time the Trump-controlled board has approved both the closure and a name-related change. Trump announced the closure plan in February, calling the institution "tired, broken and dilapidated," and the board endorsed it unanimously in March. The board was presented with a 163-page plan for a $250 million "renewal" project that includes structural repair work, new marble floors, $11.8 million in acoustical improvements, and a plan to temporarily move the 3,000-pound bronze bust of Kennedy to another building on campus.
- Trump announces plan to close Kennedy Center for two years of renovations
- Board votes unanimously to endorse closure and name change
- Judge Cooper blocks closure and orders Trump's name removed from facade
- Trump's name removed from building in overnight operation; center appeals ruling
- Board votes again to close main building for two years and add Trump inscription
Legal challenge and judicial rebuke
US District Judge Christopher Cooper blocked the closure in May, ruling that the board's March vote was "ill-informed and seemingly preordained." Cooper wrote that the board was "derelict in discharging the full range of its responsibilities to the Center" and had "based its decision on an insufficient, one-sided presentation of information." In the same ruling, Cooper ordered Trump's name removed from the facade, website and other materials, finding that only Congress had the authority to change the institution's name. A crew removed the lettering in an overnight operation in June, though a tarp concealing much of the original name remained.
The center is appealing Cooper's ruling. The judge will now review the board's latest decision to determine whether trustees performed enough due diligence. Cooper wrote in his May order that "the board will be expected to prepare itself with sufficient information to make a considered, independent decision," taking account of its obligation to both maintain and operate the arts venue.
- Congress appropriation (One Big Beautiful Bill Act)
- 257 $ millions
- Renewal project total
- 250 $ millions
- Acoustical improvements
- 11.8 $ millions
Board composition and political context
Trump assumed the chairmanship of the Kennedy Center after returning to the Oval Office, dismissed several key trustees, and appointed close allies including Sergio Gor, Dan Scavino and Susie Wiles to the board. The institution has experienced declining attendance and a number of artists have pulled out of shows following the name change. Critics have charged that the White House pushed for temporary closure to mask lagging ticket sales associated with Trump's overhaul of the space.
Beatty, who is suing to stop the closure and renovations, said the latest vote was "more of the same."
This latest development is a transparent effort to circumvent the Court's ruling, and flies in the face of the statutes that Congress passed.
Funding and next steps
Congress appropriated $257 million in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act for Kennedy Center repairs and renovations. After Cooper's ruling in May, Trump posted on Truth Social that he would work "with Congress to transfer this failing Institution back to them so they can make a determination as to what to do with it." He also wrote that unless he was free to bring the institution back "physically, financially, and artistically," he had "no interest in continuing what could only be a hopeless journey into 'NEVER NEVER LAND.'"
The board's decisions on both the closure and the inscription will be subject to approval by Judge Cooper. It was not immediately clear whether the board's move would prompt another round of legal challenges. Separately, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt announced she would leave the administration at the end of August to spend more time with her family.
