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If Trumps name is not put on the building, the donors will flee, and the expertice and funding needed for the renovation will disappear, the filing claims.
The legal battle over the Kennedy Center has taken a dramatic turn in federal court.
Government lawyers warned that Washington’s premier performing arts center could face demolition in the future unless it receives a high-profile name change.
In opposition to an emergency lawsuit from Representative Joyce Beatty, who aims to block the rebranding, Justice Department attorneys presented the argument before a U.S. District Judge, Raw Story reports.
The board previously voted to carve “Restored and Renovated by President Donald J. Trump” into the façade and rename the grounds “President Donald J. Trump Plaza.”
On page 4 of the filing, it says:
“An order blocking the Board from appropriately recognizing President Trump will cause donors to flee, financial contributions to dry up, and structural rehabilitation to stop. There will simply not be the expertise or funding necessary to rebuild and renovate this decimated structure.”
Without those changes, officials claimed the building “will deteriorate further into an unsafe, decrepit structure that will be required to be taken down.”
Funding and threats
Lawyers suggested replacing the venue with “a large outdoor amphitheater overlooking the Potomac River that has been proposed, by some, for many years.” They conceded the swap “will fail to adequately honor President John F. Kennedy,” but argued it is cheaper to run.
The administration maintains donors will only contribute if Trump gets “prominent recognition.”
Trump appointed allies to the board in 2025, but Judge Cooper ruled that “Congress gave the Kennedy Center its name, and only Congress can change it.”
Government filings describe the facility as “structurally unsound, fundamentally unsafe, and embarrassing to the Nation’s Capital,” adding that the lawsuit “almost guarantees the continued decline and eventual demise of the Kennedy Center.”
Furious public backlash
The demolition threat sparked instant fury online. Critics accused the administration of risking a historic landmark to satisfy personal vanity.
Former moderator on Meet the Press, Chuck Todd, wrote on X, “Just like a 10yo having a temper tantrum, he would rather destroy the Kennedy Center than see it left standing without his name on it.”
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Aaron Reichlin-Melnick called the move “despicable,” equating it to “threatening to tear down the Washington Monument or the Lincoln Memorial out of petulance.”
