Judge Christopher Cooper Orders Removal of Donald Trump’s Name From Kennedy Center Signage

A federal judge ordered President Donald Trump’s name removed from the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and the Trump administration asked an appeals court to keep the name on the signage as a Friday deadline approached.

U.S. District Court Judge Christopher Cooper ruled that the president’s name was illegally added to the center and denied the Trump administration’s request for a stay, leaving the deadline in place.

ABC News

Workers were seen erecting scaffolding outside the Kennedy Center under its name on Friday, but the president’s name remained on the building’s front facade as of 6 p.m. and the Justice Department later asked the D.C. Circuit for a stay by 7 p.m. Friday.

In its emergency motion, the government argued that "it does not make sense to alter the Center's name and signage now" and said donors gave money based on Trump’s name.

The Kennedy Center, established by Congress as a memorial to President John F. Kennedy, had been rebranded in December as the Trump-Kennedy Center after a Trump-aligned board of trustees added the president’s name.

As crews prepared to remove the name, scaffolding went up outside the Kennedy Center and a crowd gathered to watch, with workers briefly halting work due to weather.

NBC4 Washington reported that at one point on Friday afternoon, onlookers chanted, "Take them down!" while drivers passing by honked in apparent celebration.

Al Jazeera

The BBC described the legal fight as the Kennedy Center’s leadership and the Justice Department seeking to delay removal, while Cooper’s ruling left the deadline standing.

In a separate account, the Guardian said lawyers for Trump filed an emergency application asking for a last-minute stay and quoted the motion’s fundraising argument: "Without the name, 'Trump' on the Building, our fundraising will not only come to a halt".

The Washington Times said Cooper denied the last-ditch effort because the Trump administration had not made "a strong showing" on the merits or proved irreparable harm from complying with the order.

With the appeals process ongoing, the Kennedy Center’s website and social media had already dropped Trump’s name, and internal communications directed staff to use "The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts" or "Kennedy Center" in official materials.

“Trump’s name poised to be removed from Kennedy Center after court denies last-minute move to keep it Trump’s name poised to be removed from Kennedy Center after court denies last-minute move to keep it WASHINGTON (AP) — An appeals court rejected a last-ditch effort by the Kennedy Center’s leadership to keep President Donald Trump’s name on the building, leaving the institution with few options other than removing the name in the coming hours”

AP News

AP reported that an appeals court rejected the Kennedy Center’s last-ditch effort, leaving the institution with few options other than removing the name in the coming hours.

The Washington Times said Cooper had already found the center had taken "substantial" steps to comply with his May order, undermining the claim of irreparable harm.

The Guardian framed the dispute around the center’s bylaws, quoting that the board must condition donations on the name remaining unchanged as "the ‘Donald J. Trump and John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts.’"

CBS News also reported that Cooper blocked plans for the Kennedy Center to close for nearly two years for major renovations, leaving the institution’s operational plans tied to the same court fight over the name.