Donald Trump’s administration has insisted for months that the Kennedy Center stands to lose millions of dollars without his name on the building after losing several legal battles to rename the venue after himself.
On Thursday, the performing arts institution’s Trump-controlled board of trustees agreed to do just that.
The board voted, again, to close the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts for renovations as part of a plan announced by the president earlier this year, which was blocked by a federal judge and tied up in ongoing litigation. That plan included putting Trump’s name on the facade, in front of the name of the assassinated former president, by renaming the venue The Donald J. Trump and John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts.
But under the resolution approved by the board on Thursday, Trump’s name will appear on the building to thank the president for the multi-million dollar renovations. An inscription will read “Restored and Renovated by President Donald J. Trump” — directly below the sign.
“This morning’s decision to close the Center and the surprise agenda item to put Donald Trump’s name back on the building was more of the same,” said Democratic Rep. Joyce Beatty, who is suing to stop the building’s closure and Trump-led renovations. “This latest development is a transparent effort to circumvent the Court’s ruling, and flies in the face of the statutes that Congress passed.”
This is a developing story