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Roma Daravi, the Kennedy Center’s vice president of public
relations, said in a statement to The Associated Press that “we
are complying with the court’s order while evaluating all legal
options to preserve this revitalization and recognize President
Trump’s leadership.”
In a Thursday memo to staff from the Kennedy Center's Office of
General Counsel, the institution's lawyers said email
signatures, letterhead and other documents must reflect the name
as “The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts" or
“Kennedy Center.”
The changes, the memo said, must be completed by June 12.
In a May 29 decision, U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper
also blocked the administration from closing the cultural and
arts venue for major renovations that had been planned to start
in July.
Hours after the ruling, Trump said he was backing away from the
revamp and making arrangements to relinquish control to Congress
of what, until the Republican president’s second term, had been
known as the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
The next day, Trump on social media branded Cooper as “an anti
Trump Hater” and predicted that the performing arts center that
he wanted to shutter for a two-year overhaul will “soon be
closed, probably never to open again.”
Clearly angered by his latest legal setback, he said it was
“impossible for me to be treated fairly,” tying Cooper’s ruling
to earlier losses, including the Supreme Court’s rejection in
February of his sweeping tariffs.
The removal marked a setback in the president’s second-term
plans to remake many of Washington’s landmarks — and add new
ones.
On Thursday, his administration said renovations had been
completed on the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, painting the
bottom what Trump has called “American flag blue.” The White
House East Wing was demolished to build a large ballroom, and
Trump plans to build an arch between the Lincoln Memorial and
Arlington National Cemetery.
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Associated Press writer Hillel Italie in New York contributed to
this report. Kinnard reported from Columbia, S.C.
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