Judge Orders Trump Name Removed From Kennedy Center
A federal judge has ordered President Donald Trump’s name removed from the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, ruling that the board of trustees illegally renamed the institution without congressional approval. The decision also blocks the Trump administration’s plan to close the Washington, D.C., landmark for two years of renovations.
U.S. District Judge Christopher R. Cooper issued a 94-page opinion on Friday finding that the Kennedy Center Board of Trustees “overstepped its statutory bounds” by unilaterally adding Trump’s name to the center. Congress designated the facility as a memorial to President John F. Kennedy in 1964, and only Congress has the authority to change it, the judge ruled.
“The Kennedy Center’s organic statute makes crystal clear that the Center is to be named for President Kennedy, and it cannot bear any other formal name or public memorial based on the Board’s unilateral say-so,” Cooper wrote, as reported by The Associated Press. “Congress gave the Kennedy Center its name, and only Congress can change it.”
The Ruling
The judge ordered Trump’s name removed from the building’s facade, website, letterhead, and all official materials within 14 days. He also blocked the planned closure of the center for renovations, calling the board’s decision to halt operations “ill-informed and seemingly preordained.”
Cooper found that the board “was derelict in discharging the full range of its responsibilities to the Center” when it ratified Trump’s closure announcement, basing its decision on “an insufficient, one-sided presentation of information” without considering the full range of statutory obligations and potential adverse consequences.
The lawsuit was brought by Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio), an ex officio member of the Kennedy Center’s board. According to BBC News, Beatty said in a statement: “Today’s ruling rightly affirms that this administration’s efforts to rename and close the Center have no basis in law. The Kennedy Center is an institution that belongs to the American people, not to Donald Trump. He has desecrated this sacred memorial for his own vanity.”
Trump’s Fury
President Trump reacted with fury on his Truth Social platform shortly after the decision was issued. He called Cooper “a Judge appointed by Barack Hussein Obama” and declared the jurist “should be ashamed of himself.”
Trump suggested he would back away from the renovation project entirely, writing, as CBS News reported: “Unless I am free to do what I do better than anyone else, bring this Institution back, physically, financially, and artistically, I have no interest in continuing what could only be a hopeless journey into ‘NEVER NEVER LAND.’”
The president said he had instructed the Department of Commerce to make arrangements with Congress to transfer the institution back to lawmakers.
Kennedy Center’s Response
Roma Daravi, the Kennedy Center’s vice president of public relations, expressed confidence in an appeal. She noted that $257 million secured by Trump and approved by Congress remains in place for renovations, according to The Guardian.
“We remain committed to pursuing every lawful avenue to ensure the Trump Kennedy Center is restored as a national cultural landmark for all Americans to enjoy,” Daravi said.
Broader Context
The ruling represents a significant legal setback in Trump’s broader campaign to leave his personal mark on Washington’s cultural and historic landmarks. Since returning to the White House, Trump has demolished the East Wing of the White House to build a 100,000-square-foot ballroom, added his name to the U.S. Institute of Peace and the Justice Department headquarters, and pushed for a “triumphal arch” overlooking the Potomac River.
The Kennedy Center’s transformation began in February 2025, when Trump fired Democratic members of the bipartisan board and replaced them with his own appointees, installing himself as chairman. In December 2025, the board voted to add Trump’s name to the institution, creating “The Trump Kennedy Center.” The changes prompted a wave of cancellations by artists and performing groups, including a run of the musical “Hamilton.”
Legal and Political Implications
Cooper’s ruling rests on straightforward statutory interpretation: Congress named the Kennedy Center by law, and only Congress can change it. The Trump administration is expected to appeal, and the case could reach the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Joe Kennedy III, the former congressman and grandnephew of President Kennedy, had publicly stated shortly after the renaming that the change was likely illegal, arguing the center “can no sooner be renamed than can someone rename the Lincoln Memorial.”
What’s Next
The immediate question is whether the Trump administration will appeal and how the appellate court will rule. Meanwhile, Trump’s threat to transfer the institution back to Congress raises questions about the center’s future leadership and funding. The $257 million secured for renovations hangs in the balance, and it remains unclear whether artists and performers who canceled bookings in protest will return to the venue.
Bill Maher is still scheduled to receive the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor at the Kennedy Center on June 28, an event that may now carry added significance as the institution navigates its most turbulent chapter in decades.