The Trump administration filed an appeal Thursday challenging a federal court decision that mandated the removal of Trump’s name from Washington’s Kennedy Center and prevented the Republican leader from shutting down the performing arts facility for renovations.
The appeal was submitted to the Washington-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, contesting a comprehensive decision against the administration in legal action initiated by Democratic U.S. Representative Joyce Beatty of Ohio, who serves on the Kennedy Center’s board through her congressional role.
Neither the White House nor Beatty’s office provided immediate responses to comment requests.
On May 29, U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper determined that federal law “makes crystal clear” that Congress designated the center for former Democratic President John F. Kennedy, “and only Congress can change it.” The judge mandated Trump’s name be stripped from the building’s exterior, website, and promotional materials.
Following the ruling, Trump announced on his Truth Social platform that his administration would hand over Kennedy Center control to Congress.
“I cannot be involved with a situation where danger to the Public is allowed to flourish in plain and open sight,” Trump stated, citing significant structural problems with the facility.
Trump indicated he instructed the U.S. Commerce Department to “make all necessary arrangements with Congress to allow a full and complete transfer of this Institution” and transfer operational, maintenance, and management duties to lawmakers.
The Kennedy Center began operations in 1971 as a tribute to the assassinated president, who died in 1963. The board decided in December to modify the center’s designation to incorporate Trump’s name, after he replaced multiple board members last year and named himself as a trustee.
Beatty initiated legal proceedings against the Trump administration in December, describing the facility’s renaming as “a flagrant violation of the rule of law” that “flies in the face of our constitutional order.”
Trump declared the Kennedy Center’s two-year shutdown in February without advance notice.
The Republican leader’s Kennedy Center renovation proposal represents one element of his wider initiative to transform Washington’s central monuments. His plans also include constructing a 250-foot (76-meter) arch and developing a 90,000-square-foot ballroom where the demolished East Wing of the White House currently stands.
