Donald Trump loves to rename things. But more than that, put your name everywhere. It is your seal of ownership, as it is for your buildings, your golf courses, your businesses and anything else you can imagine. And from this obsession, combined with his deep desire for revenge on everything related to the Democrats, the American president managed to get the board of directors of the performing arts center in Washington DC, appointed by Trump himself, to vote this Thursday in favor of renaming the main performing arts center in the American capital Trump Kennedy Center, as reported by the White House.
The news sparked outrage among Democrats, who said the board had exceeded its legal authority. And also among the former president’s niece, Maria Shriver, who criticized Kennedy’s initiative. It says adding your number to President Kennedy’s name is acceptable. No loss. The next quizás quiera is renamed JFK Airport, the Lincoln Monument, the Trump Lincoln Monument. The monument to Trump Jefferson. The Smithsonian Trump Museum. And the list goes on. ¿Don’t we see what happened? ¡Vamos, compatriots! ¡Despierten! It’s not worthy. No grace. This is an issue with your charging situation. It’s really strange. It’s obsessive, in a strange way. Just when you think someone can’t go any lower, they fall…”
Earlier this year, Trump transformed the Kennedy-era White House rose garden into a patio, removing the grass and laying down pavers.
Congress named the center in honor of President John F. Kennedy in 1964, after his assassination. Donald A. Ritchie, Senate historian from 2009 to 2015, explained to AP that, since Congress had appointed the center, it would be up to it to “change the law.”
Ritchie added that while Trump and others can refer to the center “informally” by a different name, they cannot do so in a way “that is legally compliant.”
However, the board did not wait for the issue to be debated in Congress and quickly changed its website logo to reflect the new name.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries told reporters that legislative action was needed. The New York Democrat is a member of the board because of his position in Congress.
Trump has been hinting at a name change for some time. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced the vote on social media, attributing it to the “incredible work that President Trump has done over the last year to save the building. Not only from a rebuilding perspective, but also from a financial and reputational perspective.”
Trump, a Republican and chairman of the board, said at the White House: “The board is a very distinguished board, made up of the most distinguished people in the country, and I was surprised and honored. ” However, the truth is that Trump had already referred to the center as the “Trump Kennedy Center” in early December, when he spoke of a “big event” that would take place at the “Trump Kennedy Center” before saying, “Excuse me, at the Kennedy Center,” to the laughter of his audience. He was referring to the draw for the 2026 World Cup, in which he participated.
Trump showed little interest in the Kennedy Center during his first presidential term, the AP reports, but since returning to office in January, he has replaced board members appointed by Democratic presidents with some of his most ardent supporters, who then elected him as board chairman.
He also criticized the center’s programming and appearance and promised to completely overhaul them.
Trump secured more than $250 million from the Republican-controlled Congress to renovate the building.
Pass sales have declined since Trump took control of the center, the AP reports, and several touring productions, like “Hamilton,” have canceled their scheduled performances. Rows and rows of empty seats were seen in the concert hall during performances by the National Symphony Orchestra; some artists, like actress Issa Rae and musician Rhiannon Giddens, canceled their scheduled performances, and Kennedy Center consultants, like musician Ben Folds and singer Renée Fleming, resigned.
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