Latest news with #TrumpCenterforthePerformingArts
The Hill
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Hill
Watch live: Trump visits Kennedy Center, unveils Honors award nominees
President Trump on Wednesday morning will give remarks as he announces the new nominees for the annual Kennedy Center Honors. On Tuesday, he touted the 'great nominees' who are poised to receive the award while teasing that his last name could soon replace former President Kennedy's on the cultural institution. House Republicans have led an effort to rename the institution the 'Trump Center for the Performing Arts.' An area of the historic arts center could also be rebranded for first lady Melania Trump. The visit also comes after the president voiced his disappointment after touring the Kennedy Center for the first time earlier this year. He subsequently vowed to 'fix' the place, fired several member of the board and naming himself chair. The Trumps later attended a showing of 'Les Misérables' and a fundraiser in support of the center. The event is scheduled to begin at 11:15 a.m. EDT.
The Hill
28-07-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
GOP bill seeks to rename Kennedy Center for Trump
A House Republican's bill would strip former President John F. Kennedy's name from the Washington institution created in the 35 th commander in chief's honor and instead have it known as the 'Trump Center for the Performing Arts.' The bill, recently introduced by Rep. Bob Onder (R-Mo.), aims to 'designate the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts as the 'Donald J. Trump Center for the Performing Arts.'' Representatives for Onder and the Kennedy Center didn't immediately return ITK's request for comment about the proposed name change. The legislation comes after House Republicans on the Appropriations Committee approved an amendment earlier this month to the interior, environment and related agencies annual spending bill that would rename a space inside the Kennedy Center — the prominent Washington arts hub's famed opera house — the 'First Lady Melania Trump Opera House.' Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho) called the potential opera house designation an 'excellent way to recognize [Melania Trump's] support and commitment to promoting the arts.' The opera house amendment was met with fierce condemnation from Trump critics, including Jack Schlossberg, Kennedy's 32-year-old grandson. 'A nation reveals itself not only by the men it produces — but also by the men it honors, the men it remembers,' Schlossberg said in a social media post. 'The Trump administration stands for freedom of oppression, not expression,' Schlossberg said. Trump, in an unprecedented move, overhauled the Kennedy Center's board and named himself its chairman in February, accusing it of being too 'woke.' After touring the Kennedy Center in March, Trump said it was in a state of 'tremendous disrepair.' 'We're going to fix it up, but it's really emblematic of our country,' Trump said at the time. The Kennedy Center opened its doors to the public in 1971. It describes its namesake Kennedy on its website as a 'lifelong supporter and advocate of the arts' who 'frequently steered the public discourse toward what he called 'our contribution to the human spirit.'' According to the institution, two months after the president was assassinated in 1963, 'Congress passed and President Johnson signed into law legislation renaming the National Cultural Center… as a 'living memorial' to Kennedy.'
