Kennedy Center to establish new endowment in Trump’s name

The Kennedy Center is establishing a new endowment in President Trump’s name to support previously existing private endowments and its $257 million in federal funding. 

The fund was created at a Thursday meeting of the performing arts center’s board of trustees, with the members voting unanimously to acknowledge the president’s contributions to the center by all legal means. The Kennedy Center’s board is chaired by Mr. Trump and largely made up of his allies.

The Kennedy Center this weekend removed Mr.  Trump’s name from the building to comply with a ruling by a D.C. District Court judge last month, according to a notice of compliance filed by the administration. The administration filed a last-minute request to stay the judge’s injunction pending their appeal, but it was ultimately rejected. 

The board during Thursday’s meeting also voted to file Friday’s emergency appeal to stay that earlier ruling. 

“We remain fully compliant with the court’s directive while we evaluate legal options regarding the Board’s unanimous vote,” said Roma Davari, Vice President of Public Relations at the Kennedy Center. “The establishment of the Trump Kennedy Center Fund is intended to recognize President Donald J. Trump’s significant contributions and dedication to America’s premier cultural center, while furthering our founding mission like never before.”  

A Kennedy Center official told CBS News that the Trump Kennedy Center Fund is “a landmark commitment to securing the future of the nation’s preeminent performing arts institution and its enduring legacy of artistic excellence.” A source with knowledge of the plans for the endowment suggested it will focus on the “physical disrepair” of the building, an element the current board feels has been neglected in the past.

In the court filing last week, the administration argued that if it was required to revert back to its original name, it would be obligated to refund any donations made to The Trump Kennedy Center.  

“Without the name, ‘Trump’ on the Building, our fundraising will not only come to a halt, but any and all monies raised or committed would be obligated to be returned, refunded, or terminated,” the government wrote.

The establishment of the fund comes less than two weeks after a district court judge ruled the Kennedy Center’s board acted unlawfully in adding the president’s name and in making plans for two years of closure and renovations. That ruling mandated Mr. Trump’s name be removed from the building by June 12. 

In a statement to CBS News, lawyers representing Democratic Rep. Joyce Beatty, who sued the administration over the name change and closure last year, called the administration’s Friday appeal an “11th hour gambit,” after they waited almost two weeks to challenge the decision. After the name removal this weekend, Beatty said in a statement, “Today’s victory is the beginning of returning the Kennedy Center to the American people,” adding, “The rule of law prevailed, and that is worth celebrating.”  

A Kennedy Center official said Mr. Trump will retain his role as chairman of the board, and the center will remain a living memorial to President John F. Kennedy. 

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the new fund in the president’s name.