“You can easily imagine my indignation at seeing this revered institution become the subject of such a bitter struggle over one man’s name and unchecked ego,” wrote Kennedy Center honoree Barbra Streisand. She was referring to President Donald Trump‘s attempts to close down or, in his words, issue a warning that the center would be “ripped down” unless a renovation plan is carried out and his administration gets recognition for it.
Trump has long complained that the center is old and needs to be renovated. Congress included more than $250 million in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act last year for just that. But since Trump’s takeover of the center weeks into his second term, the institution has seen a drop in ticket sales and, after the president’s name was added to the complex in December, another wave of artist cancellations.
What followed was a saga in which Trump’s name was added on the front of the building and then, when order by a judge, it was removed. But a tarp was then placed over the entire edifice as if to hide it.
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Trump posted on Truth Social earlier this week that the renovation will not take place unless courts lift a judge’s order that has prohibited his name from being enshrined on the facade of the complex. Then came the president’s threat on Wednesday that the center may be ripped down unless a renovation plan is carried out and his administration gets recognition for it.
A federal judge today said that the Kennedy Center must give the court 30 days notice before proceeding on any demolition of the complex.
Sharing a photo of herself and the late president, streisand noted that the center was renamed in the wake of Kennedy’s death as a memorial, and for good reason.
“The Kennedy family and other American leaders wanted a meaningful way to preserve his legacy. Re-naming the Cultural Center in JFK’s honor was a fitting choice, because he was a true champion of the arts.”
In fact, being honored by the center meant something greater that other awards.
“In 2008, I was deeply honored to be included in the 31st annual class of Kennedy Center Honorees. For me, and for so many artists, that honor represented something larger than a career recognition. It represented a belief in the importance of art to the life of a democracy.”
She continued, “That is why what is happening to the Kennedy Center is so galling and painful to witness.”
Another reaction came from Kennedy’s niece, Maria Shriver, who wrote on Tuesday, “That a sitting president would not let any renovations to a public building go on unless he gets to first put his name in the said building… What a sad state of affairs. What a tragedy. Actually, how small minded, how narcissistic. Actually great men, devoted to public service and the public good do not act like this.”
