Obama-nominated judge rules against Trump’s name on Kennedy Center, two-year closure

A federal judge in Washington, D.C., ordered that the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts remove President Donald Trump’s name from the building’s facade and blocked the planned closure for renovations.

U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper, nominated by former President Barack Obama in 2014, ruled Friday that the Kennedy Center Board’s decision to rename the center was unlawful.

“Congress gave the Kennedy Center its name, and only Congress can change it,” Cooper ruled.

The Center’s board voted to rename the center and add Trump’s name to the building in December 2025. The board also voted on March 16 to close and renovate the Center for two years, starting after July 4.

On the closure, Cooper ruled that “the current record reveals that the Board rendered this ill-informed and seemingly preordained decision without regard for how it would accomplish its full array of statutory responsibilities. The trustees might have assessed the propriety of closure in a number of prudent ways. This was not one.”

Congress renamed the Center after former President John F. Kennedy in 1964 from the “National Cultural Center,” the judge noted.

Roma Daravi, vice president of public relations for the Center, said the board plans to appeal the decision.

“We will review the decision carefully though the reality remains – the Center requires an urgent and significant restoration – a truth that even the plaintiff acknowledges,” Daravi said. “With $257 million secured by President Trump and approved by Congress, the resources are in place and we remain committed to pursuing every lawful avenue to ensure the Trump Kennedy Center is restored as a national cultural landmark for all Americans to enjoy.”

When asked for comment, the White House pointed The Lion to the president’s post on Truth Social condemning the judge’s decision.