Donald Trump fired multiple Kennedy Center board members and named himself chairman on Friday. This move has created confusion about who runs one of America’s biggest arts venues.
“At my direction, we are going to make the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., GREAT AGAIN,” Trump wrote on his social media site. He fired about half the board members through email notices, including chairman David Rubenstein, who led the center since 2010.
By Monday, Trump picked Richard Grenell to run daily operations. Grenell worked for Trump before as intelligence director and ambassador. The Kennedy Center website quickly removed the fired board members’ names.
The changes affect how the center runs its over 2,200 yearly performances, events, and exhibits. Trump said he’ll stop drag performances, which the center hosted twice last year – a July “Drag Salute to Divas” and a November “Drag Brunch.”
“This is about who gets to exist in public spaces,” said Blaq Dinamyte, who leads a drag artists’ group. The center brings in over two million visitors yearly for plays, concerts, and dance shows.
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Former congressman Martin Frost said Trump’s actions might hurt fundraising. “There have been significant individuals in both parties who have written very large checks,” he noted.
The center’s structure makes these changes unusual. Congress created it in 1958 as both public and private. Usually, board members pick their chairman – no president has taken such action with the Kennedy Center’s board before.
Trump didn’t attend Kennedy Center Honors during his first term, breaking a tradition other presidents followed. “I didn’t want to go,” Trump said recently. “There was nothing I wanted to see.”
The center already faced changes. Their president, Deborah Rutter, planned to leave. Now they must handle both her exit and Trump’s new rules.
These changes affect many people. Board members received termination notices. Performers wonder if their shows will continue. The center’s website experienced technical difficulties from people trying to learn what happens next.
The law remains unclear about Trump’s power to make these changes. Unlike military schools or government offices, the Kennedy Center mixes public and private control. This difference might lead to court fights about who really runs it.
