Key facts
- President Trump has not ruled out demolishing the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
- Trump stated the center would close and be "ripped down" if his administration does not receive recognition.
- A judge has ruled that only Congress has the authority to rename the memorial.
- The Kennedy Center's board voted to close the facility for two years, citing $257 million in needed repairs and renovations.
- Democratic congresswoman Joyce Beatty and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse allege the closure is a pretext for financial distress.
- Senator Sheldon Whitehouse described the events as three phases of Trump's "assault" on the complex.
President Donald Trump has not ruled out demolishing the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, stating that the venue would close and be "ripped down" if his administration does not receive recognition. Protesters have gathered at the center amid fears for its future, and a judge has ordered that 30 days' notice must be given for any changes to the facility.
Trump seized control of the center in February 2025, citing financial difficulties and firing board members who did not align with his vision. He subsequently ordered the facility to be closed for two years for $257 million in repairs and renovations, a move backed by his appointed board, which also voted to rename the venue the "Trump-Kennedy Center." However, US district judge Christopher Cooper intervened, ruling that only Congress has the authority to rename the memorial. The name was subsequently removed from the exterior marble facade.
On Tuesday, Judge Cooper again ruled that the Trump administration could not place a new Trump sign on the center's facade or rename its plaza without congressional approval. Hours later, the center's board voted to close the facility for two years, citing the need for repairs and renovations. The center's executive director, Matt Floca, ordered an immediate seven-day emergency closure due to "acute risks to public safety resulting from continued structural deterioration."
Democratic congresswoman Joyce Beatty and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse allege that the closure is a "pretext" to hide a financial "death spiral" caused by artist boycotts and dwindling ticket sales. Whitehouse, the top Democrat on the environment and public works committee and an ex-officio member of the Kennedy Center board of trustees, described the events as three phases of Trump's "assault" on the complex: an attempted takeover for personal gain, a renaming fiasco that damaged the business model, and now a threat of destruction if renaming is not achieved.