Trump’s New Plan to Get His Name Back on the Kennedy Center
The board of the Kennedy Center, appointed by President Trump, has voted to rename the facility to include the president's name following a renovation. This move follows a previous court order to remove his name and is expected to trigger further legal challenges.
Why it matters
The ongoing dispute highlights the politicization of national cultural institutions and the tension between executive influence and independent board governance.
The center’s board voted—again—to shut down for a renovation. It threw in a design tweak.
Alex Wroblewski / AFP / Getty August 13, 2026 Share Save Listen − 1.0 x + Seek 0:00 7:07 Donald Trump just won’t let go of his plans for the Kennedy Center.
Less than three months after a federal judge ordered the president’s name stripped from the national arts center, Trump’s handpicked trustees have found a new way to try to put him back on the building. During a board meeting today, they voted in favor of a resolution that would return the president’s name to the building’s facade. It would read:
The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts Restored and Renovated by President Donald Trump
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