Judge orders The Kennedy Center to remove Trump's name from its venue by June 12
D.C. resident Andrew Martin gestures while recording himself holding today's New York Times in front of the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, renamed The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts by the Trump administration, after a federal judge ordered that U.S. President Trump’s name be removed from the building, in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 3, 2026. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
The Kennedy Center is moving to comply with a federal court order to remove President Donald Trump's name from the iconic Washington arts venue.
The center's general counsel instructed staff to immediately change email signatures, letterhead, and documents to reflect the original name — the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts — with interior and exterior signage to be changed by June 12, according to reports by CBS News.
U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper ruled the Trump-appointed board overstepped its authority when voting in December to rename the venue "The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts," according to NBC News.
Judge Cooper said, "Congress gave the Kennedy Center its name, and only Congress can change it."
In addition to its name change, the center remains undecided about whether to proceed with a $257 million renovation scheduled to begin July 5.
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum initially resisted compliance. During an appearance on CNN's "State of the Union", Burgum explained he wasn't sure whether the order would be appealed and called it "controversy on both sides."
Trump subsequently posted he would withdraw from the center, calling it "broken, unsafe and busted," according to Spectrum News 1.
