The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts in Washington is set to receive a new name after its governing board voted to rename the landmark the “Trump-Kennedy Center,” according to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
Leavitt announced the decision Thursday, writing on X that the trustees, all appointed by President Donald Trump earlier this year, “have just voted unanimously” in favor of the change. She said the move was driven by what she described as Trump’s role in rescuing the institution.
“They did so because of the unbelievable work President Trump has done over the last year in saving the building,” Leavitt wrote.
In a separate message, she added, “Congratulations to President Donald J. Trump, and likewise, congratulations to President Kennedy, because this will be a truly great team long into the future! The building will no doubt attain new levels of success and grandeur.”
Despite the board’s action, the renaming could encounter legal obstacles. Federal law governing the center specifies that no new “memorials or plaques in the nature of memorials shall be designated or installed in the public areas of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.” Changing that provision would require congressional approval. NBC News reported in July that such a step would need legislation, and House Republicans have already put forward at least one bill proposing to rename the center in Trump’s honor.
Leavitt’s portrayal of a revitalized institution stands in contrast to reports from several major news organizations suggesting the center has struggled in recent months. The New York Times reported that internal data showed ticket sales during a typical October week fell by roughly half compared with the same period last year. An analysis by The Washington Post of sales between early September and October 19 found an “across-the-board drop-off” in ticket purchases across the center’s three largest venues. Reports have also pointed to staffing declines.
Trump’s involvement with the center intensified shortly after he returned to office. Weeks into his second term, he named himself chairman of the board and removed numerous sitting trustees, explaining at the time that they “do not share our Vision for a Golden Age in Arts and Culture.”
In October, Trump hinted publicly that a name change was on the way. In a Truth Social post, he shared images of newly painted exterior columns, jokingly praising “the new TRUMP KENNEDY, whoops, I mean, KENNEDY CENTER, columns.”
Even so, Trump said later Thursday that the board’s formal decision caught him off guard. Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, he said, “I was surprised by it. I was honored by it. You know, we’re saving the building.”
The Kennedy Center’s name itself has a layered history. The institution was established in 1958, when President Dwight Eisenhower signed legislation to “provide for a National Cultural Center” in the nation’s capital. In 1962, President John F. Kennedy and first lady Jacqueline Kennedy spearheaded a $30 million fundraising campaign to construct the facility. After Kennedy was assassinated in November 1963, President Lyndon Johnson signed a law two months later renaming the center in his honor.
{Matzav.com}
