Nicolai Haugsted
The POTUS threatens with revenge, after being declined demand from judges.
Washington’s most famous performing arts venue has become the latest battleground in Donald Trump’s effort to reshape the American capital.
According to Reuters, hours after a federal judge blocked key parts of the president’s plans for the Kennedy Center, Trump announced that he wants Congress to take control of the institution, arguing that his administration can no longer oversee the project under the court’s restrictions.
Decision follows a legal ruling that struck at the heart of Trump’s controversial overhaul of the cultural landmark.
Judge Rejects Name Change
US District Judge Christopher Cooper ruled that the Kennedy Center cannot legally be renamed without approval from Congress.
Court order requires the removal of signs and official references that identify the venue as the “Trump Kennedy Center.”
“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.
“Congress gave the Kennedy Center its name, and only Congress can change it.”
Administration has been given 14 days to remove references to the renamed institution.
Renovation Plans Also Blocked
Court ruling delivered another setback by halting plans to close the center for two years during a major renovation project.
Judge acknowledged that repairs are needed but concluded that a full shutdown could not proceed under the current plan.
Cooper emphasized that his decision was not intended to determine how the center should ultimately operate.
“Does not purport to dictate how the Center should be run, nor does it prescribe any particular plan for the institution — construction, closure, or otherwise — moving forward,” the judge wrote.
Trump Responds
Trump reacted swiftly, announcing that he had instructed officials to begin preparations for transferring responsibility for the institution to Congress.
President argued that continuing operations during extensive renovations could create safety concerns.
“I cannot be involved with a situation where danger to the Public is allowed to flourish in plain and open sight,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Questions remain over how such a transfer could be implemented.
Congress established the Kennedy Center in 1958, but day-to-day governance currently falls to a board of trustees that Trump has filled with allies during his second term.
Broader Battle Over Washington
Conflict surrounding the Kennedy Center is part of a larger campaign by Trump to remake several prominent locations in the nation’s capital.
Plans already announced include a massive ballroom near the White House and a towering arch intended to commemorate America’s 250th anniversary.
Several of those projects have also become the subject of legal challenges.
Lawsuit that led to Friday’s ruling was brought by Democratic Representative Joyce Beatty, who serves on the Kennedy Center board through her congressional role.
Following the decision, Beatty welcomed the outcome.
“The Kennedy Center is an institution that belongs to the American people, not to Donald Trump,” she said.
Her attorneys called the ruling “a powerful blow against the Trump administration’s corruption.”
Kennedy Center first opened its doors in 1971 as a living memorial to President John F. Kennedy. More than five decades later, the institution now finds itself at the center of a high-profile clash involving politics, culture and presidential power.
