US court rules that Trump’s name must stay off Kennedy Center during appeal

The Kennedy Center's board of trustees, chaired by Trump, sought to keep his name on the building's facade and signage after it was removed last month following a federal judge's order. A three-judge panel from the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit denied the board's appeal on Wednesday, finding insufficient grounds to pause the removal during the ongoing legal process.

The board had contended that removing Trump's name would harm fundraising efforts, but the appellate judges determined this argument lacked concrete supporting evidence or specific facts. The panel noted that the trustees failed to demonstrate how they would suffer irreparable harm if the name remained off the building throughout the appeal.

The legal dispute began when the Kennedy Center was renamed "The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" after Trump took office in 2025 and replaced the board of trustees with his appointees. Democratic Representative Joyce Beatty, a board member, challenged the name change in court, leading to the federal judge's removal order and subsequent appeals.

Beatty characterized the ruling as vindicating the position that the renaming was unlawful and stated that Trump's name no longer "desecrates this sacred memorial, which belongs to the American people." The Kennedy Center has not publicly commented on the decision.