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🇺🇸 United States /Culture & Society

Judge weighs Kennedy Center board's push to reinstate Trump's name on building

From CBS News · () English

Translated from English and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources In the courts
  • A federal judge is hearing arguments on the Kennedy Center board's attempt to put President Trump's name back on the building.
  • Lawyers for Rep. Joyce Beatty argue the board's actions violate federal law and seek emergency relief to block the changes.
  • The board previously voted to rename the center and add inscriptions, but a judge had ordered the name removed earlier this year.

U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper is considering new attempts by the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts' Board of Trustees to reinstate President Trump's name on the building's facade. Lawyers representing Ohio Democratic Rep. Joyce Beatty and the Justice Department argued before Cooper on Thursday regarding these recent efforts.

What does that have to do with what Congress intended?

— Judge Christopher CooperThe judge questioned the urgency of a deadline set by the Kennedy Center board.

Beatty's legal team contends that the board's latest actions to recognize the president violate federal law. They have asked the judge for emergency relief to prevent the changes. Cooper convened a hearing to consider Beatty's request but had not issued a decision by the end of the day. The Kennedy Center's board has agreed to take no action until September 8.

Cooper questioned Brantley Mayers, a Justice Department lawyer, about the urgency of a fast-approaching deadline. The board, chaired by Trump and including his Cabinet members and allies, recently approved a resolution. This resolution calls for "Renovated and Restored by President Donald J. Trump" to be inscribed below the center's name and for the "President Donald J. Trump Plaza" to be designated for the grounds if a $100 million fundraising goal is met.

deja vu

— Nathaniel ZelinskyBeatty's lawyer described the board's vote to put Trump's name back on the center.

Nathaniel Zelinsky, an attorney for Beatty, described the board's vote as "deja vu" and an act of "outright defiance" of a previous order from Cooper. Earlier this year, Cooper had barred the center's closure and ordered Trump's name removed from the building. Zelinsky argued the board is attempting to "end-run your order" by pursuing the same actions previously prohibited.

outright defiance

— Nathaniel ZelinskyBeatty's lawyer characterized the board's vote as a defiance of a previous court order.

The board had initially voted late last year to rename the center "The Donald J. Trump and John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts," and the name was added to the facade. However, construction crews removed it in June following Cooper's ruling. The Justice Department, in court papers, warned of the Kennedy Center's "structural and financial disarray."

They are doing the same thing they were told they couldn't do before.

— Nathaniel ZelinskyBeatty's lawyer argued the board is ignoring a prior court ruling.
About this summary

Originally published by CBS News in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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