Key facts
- Workers began removing President Donald Trump's name from the Kennedy Center facade on Saturday.
- A federal judge ruled the renaming unlawful, stating only Congress has the right to change the venue's name.
- An appeals court denied the Trump administration's request to delay the removal.
- Thunderstorms caused a delay in the removal operation, leading to a missed Friday deadline.
- The Trump administration missed the Friday deadline to remove President Trump's name from the Kennedy Center.
Workers began removing President Donald Trump's name from the facade of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on Saturday, following a federal judge's ruling that the renaming was unlawful. The operation was delayed past a court-ordered Friday deadline due to thunderstorms, which presented safety concerns for workers.
U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper had ordered the removal by Friday, stating that only Congress has the right to change the venue's name. The Trump administration had sought a last-minute attempt to pause the order, which was rejected by the judge and an appeals court.
Cooper ruled in late May that Trump’s rebranding of the performing arts center in his own name was illegal, contravening federal law that the center could only honor Kennedy and usurping authority from Congress. In the weeks since, officials have removed references to Trump on the Kennedy Center’s website, issued new identification cards, edited employee email signatures and rescinded any trademark applications adding Trump to the institution’s name. Cooper also nixed the Kennedy Center’s closure in his May ruling, prompting Trump to angrily announce plans to transfer the institution back to Congress.