Lutnick floats workaround to get Trump's name on Kennedy Center

After returning to the White House, Trump sacked the board of the Kennedy Center and replaced it with his appointees.

Published: August 27, 2026 4:28pm

Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick on Thursday suggested that the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts could add President Donald Trump's name to a place of prominence as an acknowledgment of his role in renovations.

After returning to the White House, Trump sacked the board of the Kennedy Center and replaced it with his appointees. That group subsequently overhauled the performance set list and later voted to add the president's name, triggering litigation.

Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Lutnick floated the creation of a sign “[u]nderneath the name of the building, which will remain the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, Renovated and Restored by President Donald J. Trump."

After a federal judge blocked the addition of Trump's name to the center outright and later ordered the removal of his name from signage, the board has explored alternate ways to recognize Trump.

Earlier this month, the Kennedy Center board approved a new sign that would include Trump's name. The Trump administration, for its part, has since suggested it may have to demolish the building outright if the court did not permit a planned, two-year closure for renovations.

Ben Whedon is the Chief Political Correspondent for Just the News. Follow him on X.

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