Topline
A federal judge denied the Kennedy Center’s last-minute bid to pause a court order requiring the removal of President Donald Trump’s name while it pursues an appeal, as construction crews stand by outside the building to comply with the Friday deadline to remove the name.
Construction crews arrived at the Kennedy Center on Friday. (Photo by Alex WROBLEWSKI / AFP via Getty Images)
AFP via Getty Images
Key Facts
U.S. District Judge Christopher R. Cooper said Friday afternoon the Kennedy Center’s motion for a stay, which would pause his earlier order to remove Trump’s name while the center pursues an appeal, is denied because a stay is an “extraordinary remedy.”
A stay is not warranted because the Kennedy Center failed to prove it would suffer “irreparable harm” if it removes Trump’s name on Friday but its appeal later succeeds, Cooper wrote in his ruling.
Cooper said the Kennedy Center has not made a “strong showing” that it will succeed on the merits of its appeal for the “detailed reasons laid out in the Court’s ruling” that ordered the center to remove Trump’s name.
Cooper noted the Kennedy Center had already taken “substantial steps” to comply with his original order, such as by removing Trump’s name from its website, which Cooper said undermines its claim it would suffer “irreparable harm” in heeding his order.
Construction crews began setting up under the Kennedy Center’s sign Friday morning, apparently preparing to remove Trump’s name from the building’s facade, according to various livestreams outside the center.
The crews have not yet started to remove any letters, and the sign still includes “The Donald J. Trump And” words on the building, added by the White House’s direction, above the original sign that reads: “The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center For The Performing Arts.”
Friday is the court-ordered deadline for the Kennedy Center to remove Trump’s name from its building and other digital or physical branding materials after a federal judge ruled the Kennedy Center board cannot unilaterally change the center’s name without congressional approval.
what to watch for
Whether the Kennedy Center will appeal Cooper’s Friday ruling. The Kennedy Center can appeal the decision to Washington’s federal court of appeals, but the timeline for such a process is unclear, the New York Times reported, and legal observers told the Times the judge’s original order suggests the center has until midnight to remove Trump’s name. Lawyers representing the Kennedy Center filed an appeal to fight the order requiring Trump’s name removal on Thursday.
Why Did A Court Order Trump’s Name Removed From The Kennedy Center?
Cooper ruled in late May the Kennedy Center’s name cannot be changed without congressional approval, saying the center’s establishing 1964 law “makes crystal clear that the Center is to be named for President Kennedy.” Cooper ruled in favor of Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, who filed a lawsuit arguing the Kennedy Center cannot be renamed by its board of trustees alone. Following the court ruling, the Kennedy Center instructed employees to immediately remove Trump’s name from all official materials. Trump lambasted Cooper in a post on Truth Social after the ruling, suggesting he should be “brought up on charges” for conflict of interest because his wife, Amy Jeffress, is a personal counsel to former President Joe Biden.
tangent
The Washington National Opera filed a lawsuit against the Kennedy Center on Friday, alleging it “wrongfully held” donor gifts and endowment funds that belong to the opera. The organization, which cut ties with the Kennedy Center in January, asked for $17 million in damages.
key background
Trump embarked on a controversial takeover of the Kennedy Center shortly after beginning his second term, purging the center’s board and replacing fired members with allies in February 2025. The board then elected Trump as its new chair, and in December, the board voted to add Trump’s name to the Kennedy Center. Trump has said he targeted the Kennedy Center because he opposed its “woke” programming. Trump’s takeover has sparked protests from artists and a wave of cancellations, with Issa Rae and Shonda Rhimes among the artists who cut ties with the institution.
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