Judge says Kennedy Center board broke law putting Trump’s name on building, blocks closure
May 29, 2026, 12:26 PM | Updated: 5:06 pm
FILE - The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts is seen following a media tour intended to show building damage, April 22, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)
Credit: AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson
(AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)
WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge ruled Friday that President Donald Trump’s name was illegally added to the Kennedy Center and blocked the administration from closing the cultural and arts venue for major renovations.
U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper in Washington, D.C., ruled that the Kennedy Center board’s March 16 vote to close the facility was “ill-informed and seemingly preordained” with no regard for its legal obligations.
“The trustees might have assessed the propriety of closure in a number of prudent ways. This was not one,” he wrote.
Cooper also concluded that the board “overstepped its statutory bounds” by unilaterally adding Trump’s name to the center. Congress gave the Kennedy Center its name, and only Congress can change it, he said.
Cooper held hearings in late April for parallel lawsuits challenging the project. One was filed by a group of cultural and historic preservation organizations. The other was brought Rep. Joyce Beatty, an Ohio Democrat who serves as an ex officio member of the Kennedy Center’s board. He ruled in favor of Beatty’s request but rejected the other challenge.
