Judge in Kennedy Center case orders Trump administration to explain closure plans
A U.S. federal judge has mandated that President Donald Trump's administration provide an explanation regarding the proposed closure of the Kennedy Center for up to two years for renovations. Judge Christopher Cooper directed the administration to respond by Thursday to claims made in a lawsuit that the board's decision to proceed with the $257 million renovation project would violate a court order limiting the center's ability to shut down.
Democratic U.S. Representative Joyce Beatty, who sits on the board chaired by Trump and controlled by his appointees, argued that the board's vote on Tuesday breached the court's previous ruling. Beatty's lawyers, Norm Eisen and Nathaniel Zelinsky, emphasized that the Kennedy Center, founded by Congress and opened in 1971 as a memorial to John F. Kennedy, is currently inaccessible to the public due to new barriers.
Beatty’s lawyers stated that "no one — including the president — is above the law" in their statement. The White House and Kennedy Center have not yet commented on the matter, nor has the Justice Department, which is defending the Kennedy Center in court. The closure vote is the latest point of contention in the lawsuit, which Beatty filed last year over Trump's plan to rename the center after himself.
Beatty, a member of the Kennedy Center's board through her position in the U.S. Congress, is defending the center against the ruling that blocked a proposed July closure for renovations, arguing that it violated the board's duty of prudence. Cooper previously ruled in May that the center must remove Trump's name from the building's facade, stating that only Congress can change the name.
He expressed that he would not prevent the board from attempting to close the center again as long as it conducts a considered, independent decision. The administration has since appealed, with Trump asserting on social media that the Kennedy Center is destined to fail if it is not allowed to close for repairs.
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