December 19, 2025 · Political Spectacle & Unusual Conduct
· institutional action
Confirmed
Kennedy Center Board Votes to Add Trump's Name to the National Arts Institution
On December 18, 2025, the board of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts voted to rename the institution "The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts." The vote followed Trump's earlier takeover of the center's board, and new signage bearing his name was affixed to the building's exterior within a day of the vote.
The Kennedy Center was established by federal law as a living memorial to President Kennedy, and Democratic lawmakers, including Senator Chuck Schumer and Representative Hakeem Jeffries, argue that changing its name requires congressional action the board lacks authority to bypass on its own. Members of the Kennedy family, including niece Kerry Kennedy, along with historians and arts advocates, have criticized the move as an unprecedented insertion of a sitting president's name into a national cultural memorial.
Supporters describe the change as fitting recognition for a two-term president. Critics see it as part of a broader pattern of personal branding extending into public and cultural institutions. Legal challenges over the board's authority to rename the center are considered likely.
The Kennedy Center was established by federal law as a living memorial to President Kennedy, and Democratic lawmakers, including Senator Chuck Schumer and Representative Hakeem Jeffries, argue that changing its name requires congressional action the board lacks authority to bypass on its own. Members of the Kennedy family, including niece Kerry Kennedy, along with historians and arts advocates, have criticized the move as an unprecedented insertion of a sitting president's name into a national cultural memorial.
Supporters describe the change as fitting recognition for a two-term president. Critics see it as part of a broader pattern of personal branding extending into public and cultural institutions. Legal challenges over the board's authority to rename the center are considered likely.