Key facts
- Trump administration officials threatened to demolish the Kennedy Center if renovations are blocked.
- Justice Department attorneys requested President Trump's name be reinstated on the building.
- The venue's name was removed in June after a judge ruled its addition unlawful.
- The Kennedy Center board voted to add new signage acknowledging Trump's role in renovations.
- A judge previously ruled that renaming the center requires congressional approval.
A U.S. federal judge is set to weigh a legal challenge concerning the inscription of President Donald Trump's name on the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. This follows a previous ruling by U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper in May, who ordered the removal of Trump's name, stating that only Congress could change the center's designation as a memorial to President John F. Kennedy. The Kennedy Center subsequently removed Trump's name from its marble facade in June, covering it with a tarp.
The Trump administration has since proposed new signage that would read "The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts Restored and Renovated by President Donald J. Trump," and name the grounds the "President Donald J. Trump Plaza." Justice Department attorneys argue this does not violate the court's injunction, as the building's primary name remains unchanged, and the inscription acknowledges Trump's role in facilitating renovations. They have also threatened that if renovations are blocked, the center could deteriorate to the point of requiring demolition, with a potential replacement being an outdoor amphitheater. Democratic Representative Joyce Beatty, who serves on the Kennedy Center's board and initially sued, contends the new signage plan violates Cooper's prior order and has asked the court to block it.