Kennedy Center closes amid financial crisis and Trump name dispute

Trump claims Kennedy Center closure stems from safety concerns, urging name change as crucial for its survival.

Tarp remains after the removal of letters from the facade of the John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, following a federal judge’s order to remove US President Donald Trump's name from the institution, on September 2, 2026 in Washington, DC, the United States [File: Nathan Howard/Reuters]

The board of Kennedy Center in Washington, DC has voted to shutter the historic venue’s doors, citing what it described as a dire financial crisis amid critically needed renovations.

The board, comprised of allies of US President Donald Trump, met on Tuesday just hours after US District Judge Casey Cooper blocked the latest effort to add US President Donald Trump’s name back to the venue.

list 1 of 3 Trump administration: Kennedy Center may be demolished if repairs not made

list 2 of 3 US judge questions the push to add Trump’s name back to the Kennedy Center

list 3 of 3 US Kennedy Center faces bankruptcy, Washington Post reports

The closure marks the latest escalation in a months-long standoff between the courts and Trump after previous attempts to close the country’s premier performing arts centre. After a judge ruled that changing the building’s name to include Trump required congressional approval, the president’s appointed board has argued that the building’s survival hinged on keeping his name on its facade.

Trump responded to the closure in a social media post, writing that the board voted to close the venue for “safety reasons”. The president said renovations would not move forward unless they added his name to the building.

Judge Cooper on Tuesday ruled that a proposed name change, which would have inscribed the phrase “restored and renovated by President Donald J Trump” beneath existing signage, violates a previous order blocking the performing arts venue’s board of trustees from renaming the building.

“Simply put, defendants cannot install memorials for President Trump or anyone or anything else at the Kennedy Center without Congress’s blessing,” Cooper wrote in his decision.

The decision amounts to another legal defeat for the Kennedy Center’s board that has unsuccessfully sought to add his name to the historic venue.

Shortly after the ruling was handed down, Trump harshly criticised it, claiming the venue is currently “in a virtual state of collapse” that he has only been trying to help.

“The Board of The Kennedy Center has strongly voted to save it, and they know I’m the only one who can do so, because I have the ability to raise the money, and the ability to construct — that few others have,” Trump wrote.

The president’s name was first added to the building in December 2025 before Cooper ruled in May that was unlawful and ordered Trump’s name removed. The board complied, but tarps and scaffolding still conceal the area where the signage is located.

The legal team representing US Democratic Congresswoman Joyce Beatty – who, as an ex officio board member, sued to block Trump administration changes to the venue – praised Tuesday’s ruling as a “victory for the memory” of former President John F Kennedy and the nation.

“Two times the court has told Trump the same thing: You are not above the law,” lawyers Norm Eisen and Nathaniel Zelinsky said in a statement. “Legal sanity has once again prevailed over Trump’s vanity.”

Beatty echoed her lawyers and chastised Trump for what she described as holding the “Kennedy Center hostage”.

“The law is extremely clear: The John F Kennedy Center is named for President Kennedy—and no one else,” Beatty said.

“This unlawfulness is as breathtaking as it is wrong, and it needs to stop,” she added.

The ruling comes a day after the Washington Post reported the venue is on the verge of bankruptcy and could close as soon as Tuesday.

According to the report, trustees argued that putting Trump’s name on the building’s facade would be the only way to avoid “certain fiscal collapse”.

Without specifying, Trump hinted at possible further actions he – or the venue’s board – could take after Tuesday’s ruling.

“I also have the strength and power of the Presidency, which will be needed to do what must be done, and give it a strong shot at Greatness again!” he wrote about the venue.

“We have already wasted more than 6 months “playing around” in Court. Time is our Enemy! The Board, comprised of some of the most prominent and respected people in our Nation, is meeting again today. It will be interesting to see what happens!

Al Jazeera has reached out to current and former members of the Kennedy Center’s board, but has not yet heard back.

特朗普声称肯尼迪中心关闭是出于安全考虑，并敦促更改名称，认为这对中心的生存至关重要。

2026年9月2日，在美国华盛顿特区，联邦法官下令将美国总统唐纳德·特朗普的名字从约翰·F·肯尼迪表演艺术中心外墙上移除后，该中心外墙上的字母已被移除，目前仍覆盖着防水布。[图片：Nathan Howard/路透社]

位于华盛顿特区的肯尼迪中心董事会投票决定关闭这座历史悠久的场馆，理由是该中心面临严重的财务危机，同时急需进行翻新。

该委员会由美国总统唐纳德·特朗普的盟友组成，周二召开会议，就在几个小时前，美国地区法官凯西·库珀阻止了将美国总统唐纳德·特朗普的名字重新添加到该场所的最新努力。

特朗普政府三项举措之一：肯尼迪中心若不进行修缮可能被拆除

名单之二：美国法官质疑将特朗普的名字重新添加到肯尼迪中心的举动

据《华盛顿邮报》报道，美国肯尼迪中心面临破产，该中心位列3家机构名单之三。

此次关闭标志着法院与特朗普之间长达数月的僵局再次升级。此前，特朗普曾多次试图关闭美国首屈一指的表演艺术中心。一位法官裁定，将建筑名称更改为包含特朗普的名字需要国会批准。此后，总统任命的董事会辩称，该建筑能否继续存在取决于其外墙上是否保留特朗普的名字。

特朗普在社交媒体上回应了场馆关闭一事，他写道，董事会投票决定关闭该场馆是出于“安全原因”。总统表示，除非在建筑上加上他的名字，否则翻修工程不会继续进行。

库珀法官周二裁定，一项拟议的更名方案（该方案将在现有标牌下方刻上“由唐纳德·J·特朗普总统修复和翻新”的字样）违反了之前的一项命令，该命令阻止了该表演艺术场所的董事会更改建筑物的名称。

“简而言之，未经国会批准，被告不得在肯尼迪中心为特朗普总统或任何其他人或任何事物设立纪念碑，”库珀在他的判决书中写道。

这一决定对肯尼迪中心董事会来说又是一次法律上的挫败，他们一直试图将他的名字添加到这个历史悠久的场馆中，但未能成功。

裁决下达后不久，特朗普就对其进行了严厉批评，声称该场地目前“实际上处于崩溃状态”，而他只是试图提供帮助。

“肯尼迪中心董事会已强烈投票决定保留它，他们知道只有我才能做到这一点，因为我有能力筹集资金，也有能力进行建设——这是很少有人具备的，”特朗普写道。

总统的名字最初于2025年12月被添加到大楼上，但库珀法官在5月份裁定此举违法，并下令移除特朗普的名字。委员会遵照执行，但标牌所在区域至今仍被防水布和脚手架遮盖。

代表美国民主党国会女议员乔伊斯·比蒂（Joyce Beatty）的法律团队称赞周二的裁决是“为了纪念”前总统约翰·F·肯尼迪和国家而取得的“胜利”。比蒂作为当然董事会成员，提起诉讼以阻止特朗普政府对会议地点的更改。

律师诺姆·艾森和纳撒尼尔·泽林斯基在一份声明中表示：“法院已经两次向特朗普传达了同样的信息：你不能凌驾于法律之上。法律的理性再次战胜了特朗普的虚荣心。”

贝蒂与她的律师们的观点一致，并谴责特朗普挟持了“肯尼迪中心”。

“法律规定得非常清楚：约翰·F·肯尼迪中心是以肯尼迪总统的名字命名的——仅此而已，”比蒂说。

她补充说：“这种违法行为令人震惊，而且是错误的，必须制止。”

就在《华盛顿邮报》报道该场馆濒临破产并可能最早于周二关闭的第二天，这项裁决出炉。

据报道，受托人认为，将特朗普的名字印在建筑物的正面是避免“必然的财政崩溃”的唯一方法。

特朗普没有具体说明，但他暗示，在周二的裁决之后，他或场馆董事会可能会采取进一步行动。

“我还有总统的权力和力量，这将是完成必须做的事情，并让它再次有力地迈向伟大！”他在谈到会场时写道。

“我们已经在法庭上浪费了超过6个月的时间。时间是我们的敌人！由我们国家一些最杰出、最受尊敬的人士组成的委员会今天再次开会。看看会发生什么，将会很有意思！”

半岛电视台已联系肯尼迪中心董事会的现任和前任成员，但尚未收到回复。