A Democratic congresswoman has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration after the John F. Kennedy Center added President Donald Trump’s name to its building, a move the suit says violates the rule of law.
The lawsuit
Rep. Joyce Beatty of Ohio, an ex-officio member of the center’s board, argues that renaming the center would require an act of Congress because the original name was established through legislation that was signed into law.
She calls the effort to rename the center “more reminiscent of authoritarian regimes than an American Republic.”
The suit also declares, “This is a flagrant violation of the rule of law, and it flies in the face of our constitutional order. Congress intended the Center to be a living memorial to President Kennedy – and a crown jewel of the arts for all Americans, irrespective of party,” the suit reads.
Beatty seeks a federal judge to declare that the name of the center is the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts-its legal name-and that any vote to change the name was null and void and without legal effect.
Board vote and virtual meeting
The center’s board, handpicked by Trump, voted last week to change the institution’s name to the Trump-Kennedy Center. A day after the vote, Trump’s name was affixed to the center’s facade above President John F. Kennedy’s name.
The lawsuit alleges that during the meeting where the vote took place, which Beatty attended virtually, she was muted after she identified herself. Beatty “repeatedly attempted to unmute herself,” the suit says, but “found that she was unable to do so.”
Beatty also received written notices that she would not be unmuted and therefore could not participate in the meeting. At the end of the meeting, members of the board falsely declared that the vote had been unanimous. Attorneys for Beatty wrote that it was clear nothing could or would change defendants’ minds.
Roma Daravi, the center’s vice president of public relations, told NBC News that Beatty was not a voting member of the board and was granted the privilege of listening into the meeting.
Reactions and context
Members of the Kennedy family and many Democratic lawmakers publicly opposed the renaming move and questioned its legality.
Earlier this year, Trump abruptly shuffled the makeup of the center’s board of trustees, which then elected him board chair. The board then changed the center’s programming, effectively canceling some Pride gatherings.
Trump had teased changing the center’s name to include his own, and GOP lawmakers had proposed renaming it after first lady Melania Trump.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the lawsuit Monday night.
Key Takeaways
- Rep. Joyce Beatty has sued the Trump administration over the addition of Donald Trump’s name to the Kennedy Center.
- The lawsuit argues that the renaming violates the rule of law and requires an act of Congress.
- The board’s vote and virtual meeting raised concerns about transparency and participation.
The case underscores the tension between the Trump administration’s actions at the Kennedy Center and the legal framework that originally established the institution as a memorial to President Kennedy.
