Workers began pulling letters spelling "Donald J. Trump" off the facade of the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., just after 3 a.m. Saturday, ending about an hour later. Heavy white tarps had been wrapped around the scaffolding to block public view of the removal, though some photographers were able to see through gaps in the plastic covering.
Crowds had gathered in the plaza outside the center throughout Friday and into the evening, chanting "Take it down." The scene drew viewers both in person and online.
According to Variety, a May 29 ruling by U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper ordered Kennedy Center officials to remove Trump's name from the building within two weeks, setting a June 12 midnight deadline. The judge found that the center's board of trustees, who were hand-picked by the president, had acted illegally when they voted to add Trump's name to the facility. Cooper determined the renaming was a clear violation of a 1964 federal law establishing the building's name as "The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts" and explicitly prohibiting the board from adding any other name.
The name had been added seven months earlier. The board, controlled by Trump, had voted to place the words "The Donald J. Trump And" before the original designation. The change drew immediate outcry from Democrats and members of the Kennedy family, and triggered a wave of artist cancellations at the center.
As the midnight deadline approached, Trump and the board sought a stay that would have allowed them to keep the name past the deadline. Judge Cooper rejected it. They then appealed to the D.C. Circuit, but a three-judge panel denied that motion as well. Justice Department attorneys did request a 12-hour extension from a judge, citing thunderstorms earlier in the evening that delayed construction of the scaffolding. Work began in the early morning hours after that.
In their appellate motion, parts of which Deadline reported seemed to be written by Trump himself, the center argued that "millions" raised via the Trump Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Foundation would have to be returned. The filing argued that "people and companies, who have given, or will be giving, millions of dollars to the Center were only willing to do so with the name 'Trump' on the Building."
Earlier in the week, the Kennedy Center had already removed Trump's name from its website and social media accounts, but the letters had remained on the physical building until Saturday morning.
Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio), who filed the original lawsuit in December seeking to force the removal, released a statement Saturday morning. "Today's victory is the beginning of returning the Kennedy Center to the American people. The rule of law prevailed, and that is worth celebrating. Let this send a message across the country: when we stand up, fight back, and defend our democracy, we can win. This is just the beginning."
Trump had previously slammed Cooper, noting the judge was "appointed by Barack Hussein Obama," and said Cooper "should be ashamed of himself" because the center is "structurally dangerous" and a threat to public safety. Trump also said he would order the Commerce Department to transfer the institution back to Congress.
The court's ruling also blocked Trump and the center from taking further steps to close the institution for repairs. The president had announced the Kennedy Center would shut down for two years starting July 4, 2026, to undergo what he called a "complete rebuilding."
