Donald Trump Says He’ll Name Himself Chairman Of Kennedy Center And Oust Board Members
UPDATED with the Kennedy Center’s statement: Donald Trump said that he will oust board members of the Kennedy Center, while naming himself as its new chairman.
David Rubenstein is the current chairman of the center and agreed to stay in that role through 2026.
More from Deadline
Trump wrote on Truth Social, “At my direction, we are going to make the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., GREAT AGAIN. I have decided to immediately terminate multiple individuals from the Board of Trustees, including the Chairman, who do not share our Vision for a Golden Age in Arts and Culture. We will soon announce a new Board, with an amazing Chairman, DONALD J. TRUMP! Just last year, the Kennedy Center featured Drag Shows specifically targeting our youth — THIS WILL STOP. The Kennedy Center is an American Jewel, and must reflect the brightest STARS on its stage from all across our Nation. For the Kennedy Center, THE BEST IS YET TO COME!”
The Kennedy Center has since responded with a statement. “The Kennedy Center is aware of the post made recently by POTUS on social media. We have received no official communications from the White House regarding changes to our board of trustees. We are aware that some members of our board have received termination notices from the administration,” they said.
“Per the Center’s governance established by Congress in 1958, the chair of the board of trustees is appointed by the Center’s board members,” the statement added. “There is nothing in the Center’s statute that would prevent a new administration from replacing board members; however, this would be the first time such action has been taken with the Kennedy Center’s board.”
Trump did not identify the board members he planned to terminate, but The Atlantic, which first reported on his plans, said that he planned to oust recent appointees including former White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and former Biden adviser Mike Donilon. They were among those recently appointed by Biden.
It is unclear whether Trump can make himself chairman, or even oust members of the 36-member board. The bylaws of the Kennedy Center spell out that the president appoints trustees, who serve six-year terms.
Trump’s move is his latest effort to exert greater control over federal arts institutions, after shunning the Kennedy Center’s signature event, the Kennedy Center Honors, in his first term.
The board has been split equally between Biden’s appointees and Trump’s appointees from his first term.
Per The Washington Post, Biden appointed a list of members to the Kennedy Center board before he left office. That list included Elizabeth Alexander, who served as First Lady Jill Biden’s communications director; musician Jon Batiste; political strategist Stephanie Cutter; Donilon; former White House Social Secretary Carlos Elizondo; Jean-Pierre; attorney Chris Korge; activist Henry Munoz; Katherine Lynn Petrelius, who served as White House deputy director of personnel; event planner and designer Bryan Rafanelli; Amy Blanchard Ricchetti; former White House cabinet secretary Evan Ryan; and attorney Robin Wiessmann. As news spread of Trump’s plans, one Biden-appointed board member said that she was unaware — but would not be surprised — by Trump’s plans. A Kennedy Center spokesperson also said that they had received no formal notification.
During his first term, Trump declined to attend the Kennedy Center Honors ceremony, nor did he host an annual gathering of honorees at the White House. In 2017, after Norman Lear was announced among the slate of honorees, he announced that he would not attend the White House ceremony, and others followed.
Biden restored the tradition during his four years in office, attending his final ceremony in December.
Deborah Rutter, the current president of the Kennedy Center, announced last month that she would be stepping down from that role.
In his first days in office, Trump dissolved the President’s Committee on Arts and Humanities. Biden had revived the group during his term, which had disbanded during Trump’s first tenure in the White House.
Best of Deadline
Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.