Kennedy Center Removes Trump Name After Judge Voids 6-Month Rebranding

Q: With its original name restored, will the Kennedy Center still shut down for a two-year renovation this July?

No. As of now, the Kennedy Center is not supposed to shut down for a two-year renovation in July because a federal judge blocked that plan. Judge Christopher R. Cooper’s May ruling did more than restore the center’s original congressionally mandated name. It also overturned the board’s decision to close the building for two years beginning in early July, finding the action unlawful. Additional reporting says the court issued a preliminary injunction stopping the planned shutdown and renovation schedule. That said, there is still a compliance dispute. The Kennedy Center’s general counsel told staff that the court “did not rule that the Center must stay open during the renovations” and said more guidance would follow. Rep. Joyce Beatty’s lawyer, Norman Eisen, has said that raises serious concerns about whether the center intends to follow the order fully. Legal experts cited in coverage argue the ruling means the center must remain open unless a new lawful board action is taken. So the practical answer is that the shutdown is legally blocked for now, but there is uncertainty over whether the center’s leadership will fully comply or try to proceed in some modified way. At this point, the controlling fact is the court order: the two-year July closure is not authorized.

3 articles · Updated · TIME · Jun 9

Workers stripped Donald Trump’s name from the Kennedy Center early Saturday, hours before a court-ordered deadline to restore the venue’s original name.
A federal judge ruled in a 94-page May decision that the board’s December vote to rename the center violated Congress’s mandate that it remain a memorial to John F. Kennedy.
The rollback had already spread beyond the facade: Trump’s name was removed from the center’s website, voicemail and YouTube channel, and an internal memo told staff to scrub it from signage and promotional materials.
The legal fight is not over, because the same ruling also reversed a planned 2-year shutdown starting July 5, while lawyers for Rep. Joyce Beatty say the center may still try to close through noncompliance.
The reversal marks one of the clearest court checks on Trump’s broader second-term push to stamp his name and image across federal institutions and symbols.