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Top Dem Claims Kennedy Center Name Change Is Illegal

4 mins read
Hakeem Jeffries
Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

Top Democrats and members of the Kennedy family pushed back on the renaming of the Kennedy Center, arguing that the move was illegal.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York moved quickly to challenge the decision, arguing that the Kennedy Center’s board lacks the power to alter the institution’s name without congressional involvement.

“The Kennedy Center Board has no authority to actually rename the Kennedy Center in the absence of legislative action,” Jeffries told reporters. “It’s a disgrace.”

His remarks came just hours after White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt announced that the board had voted to incorporate Trump’s name into the world famous institution.

In a post on the social platform X, Leavitt praised the board’s decision and framed it as recognition of Trump’s efforts to stabilize the center.

“I have just been informed that the highly respected Board of the Kennedy Center, some of the most successful people from all parts of the world, have just voted unanimously to rename the Kennedy Center to the Trump-Kennedy Center, because of the unbelievable work President Trump has done over the last year in saving the building,” Leavitt wrote.

She credited Trump with turning around the venue both physically and financially, while also restoring its public standing.

“Not only from the standpoint of its reconstruction, but also financially, and its reputation. Congratulations to President Donald J. Trump, and likewise, congratulations to President Kennedy, because this will be a truly great team long into the future!” she continued. “The building will no doubt attain new levels of success and grandeur.”

Trump addressed the announcement later Thursday during a White House event, saying he was caught off guard by the vote but grateful for the recognition.

He described the Kennedy Center as struggling before his involvement and portrayed the name change as a reflection of its revival.

“We’re saving the building. We saved the building. The building was in such bad shape, physically, financially, in every other way. And now it’s very solid, very strong,” he remarked.

“We have something going on television, I guess on the 23rd December. I think it’s going to get very big ratings and the Kennedy Center is really, really back strongly.”

He also pointed to increased financial support tied to the turnaround, noting that both Congress and private donors were stepping up to ensure the center’s future.

“We had a lot of donors come in for record-setting numbers. So we saved the Kennedy Center,” he said, later adding that the idea to update the name originated with a board member and moved forward through a formal vote.

“This was brought up by one of the very distinguished board members, and they voted on it. And there’s a lot of board members, and they voted unanimously. So I was very honored. And thank you,” Trump said while discussing the decision.

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Roma Daravi, the vice president of public relations at the Kennedy Center, confirmed that the board approved the move.

The board includes several prominent figures aligned with the Trump administration, including second lady Usha Vance, Fox News host Laura Ingraham, Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo, White House deputy chief of staff Dan Scavino, and U.S. attorney general Pamela Bondi, among others.

Not everyone on the board agreed with the White House’s characterization of the vote.

Rep. Joyce Beatty of Ohio, an ex officio member of the board, disputed claims that the decision was unanimous and alleged that dissenting voices were silenced.

In a video posted to X, Beatty said she attempted to raise objections during the meeting but was unable to do so.

“I was on that call, and as I tried to push my button to voice my concern, to ask questions and certainly not to vote in support of this, I was muted. Each time I tried to speak, I was muted,” Beatty said in the recording.

She claimed that online participants were prevented from participating in the discussion, even as the vote was later described as unanimous.

“Participants were not allowed to voice their concerns who were online. Yet, it was said at the end, it was a unanimous vote,” she said.

“For the record. This was not unanimous,” Beatty wrote alongside the video.

She also alleged that the item was not listed on the meeting agenda, adding, “This was not consensus. This is censorship.”

Beatty also questioned whether the board had the legal authority to act at all, pointing back to Congress’s role in creating the Kennedy Center.

“Clearly, the Congress has a say in this. This center, the Kennedy Center, was created by the Congress,” she said parroting Jeffries’ objection.

The dispute quickly drew in members of the Kennedy family, several of whom issued sharp condemnations of the move.

Jack Schlossberg, a grandson of President John F. Kennedy, responded online with a statement backing Beatty’s claims about the meeting.

“Microphones were muted and the board meeting and vote NOT unanimous,” Schlossberg posted.

“Trump explicitly motivated to act by JACK FOR NEW YORK. Our campaign represents everything Trump can’t stand or defeat.”

Maria Shriver also weighed in, calling the name change unacceptable and accusing Trump of tarnishing her uncle’s legacy.

“It is beyond comprehension that this sitting president has sought to rename this great memorial dedicated to President Kennedy,” Shriver wrote on X.

“It is beyond wild that he would think adding his name in front of President Kennedy’s name is acceptable. It is not.”

She said attaching Trump’s name to the center was neither dignified nor appropriate, arguing that it diminished the stature of the office.

“Just when you think someone can’t stoop any lower, down they go,” Shriver added.

Shriver went on to mock the idea by suggesting additional renamings, including JFK Airport and landmarks such as the Lincoln Memorial, the Jefferson Memorial, and the Smithsonian, all with Trump’s name attached.

“Can we not see what is happening here?” she wrote. “C’mon, my fellow Americans! Wake up!”

Former Rep. Joe Kennedy III echoed those objections, pointing again to federal law.

“The Kennedy Center is a living memorial to a fallen president and named for President Kennedy by federal law,” he wrote online.

“It can no sooner be renamed than can someone rename the Lincoln Memorial, no matter what anyone says.”

Jeffries later joined other top Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island and Mark Warner of Virginia, and Rep. Rick Larsen of Washington, in a joint statement criticizing how the vote was handled.

“At today’s meeting, a sitting Member of Congress was muted, and participants were prevented from speaking — actions that reflect a troubling lack of transparency and respect for the rule of law,” the statement said.

“This whole process displays the corruption that permeates the entire Trump Administration, and as ex-officio members of the Kennedy Center Board, we will be unwavering in our commitment to holding this Administration accountable.”

Clark Kelley

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