The Kennedy Center said it would remove Donald Trump’s name from the facade of the arts complex, following a court order that required the change and a midnight deadline that was later delayed by 12 hours after thunderstorms slowed construction work needed to begin the removal process. Crews were expected to take down the lettering “The Donald J. Trump And,” restoring the center’s original full name, the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts. The delay meant the most visible part of the removal could happen in the middle of the night, reducing the number of spectators and television viewers who would witness it live.
By Friday afternoon and evening, crowds, reporters, camera crews, and livestreamers had gathered outside the Kennedy Center to watch the outcome. Supporters in the crowd cheered each step of the scaffolding setup and repeatedly chanted for the name to be taken down. The center had been under a court-ordered obligation to comply by midnight, after U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper ruled last month that the board controlling the Kennedy Center under Trump lacked the authority to add the president’s name to the building because only Congress could authorize such a change. The center had already removed Trump’s name from its website and social media accounts earlier in the week, but the name remained on the building until the final removal work began.
Trump and the center’s board attempted to delay the order, first seeking a stay from Cooper and then appealing to the D.C. Circuit, but both efforts failed. In their appellate filing, the center argued that millions of dollars raised through the Trump Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Foundation could be jeopardized if the name were removed, claiming donors supported the center only because Trump’s name was attached to the building. The filing also suggested that removing the name would require returning contributions, though the court did not accept that argument.
The dispute stems from Trump’s effort early in his second term to gain control of the Kennedy Center’s board, which led to his election as chairman. In December, the board voted to add his name to the complex, drawing strong criticism from Democrats and members of the Kennedy family. The branding change also coincided with a new round of artist cancellations and falling ticket sales, as the center’s core audience in Washington, D.C., and the surrounding suburbs had leaned heavily against Trump in the 2024 election.
Rep. Joyce Beatty, who is an ex-officio member of the board, filed suit seeking removal of Trump’s name and opposing a separate plan to close the center for two years for renovations. Judge Cooper also found the board had acted improperly in approving the closure without adequately considering its effects on programming. Beatty was present outside the center on Friday as the removal process unfolded. In response to the request for more time, her legal team argued the center had weeks to comply and blamed its delay on its own inaction, while saying a short extension could be tolerated but further delays should be opposed.
The scene carried broader symbolic weight for critics who viewed it as a rare public rebuke of Trump’s efforts to reshape Washington. Even as the name removal moved forward, Trump remained prominent elsewhere in the capital region, with UFC events tied to America’s 250th anniversary taking place nearby and a weekend appearance planned at the White House.
