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Trump instructs Commerce Department to transfer Kennedy Center back to Congress citing structural dangers
President Donald Trump has announced he will work with Congress to transfer control of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts back to lawmakers, citing what he described as rotting beams, parking areas subject to collapse and other safety hazards. The move follows a judge's refusal to close the venue for renovations.
President Donald Trump has moved to wash his hands of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, instructing the Department of Commerce to arrange a full transfer of the iconic Washington institution back to Congress. In a lengthy statement posted on his social media platform, Trump framed the decision as a response to what he described as irreconcilable structural problems at the venue and a judicial ruling that blocked his administration from closing it for major renovations.
The president painted a grim picture of the physical state of one of America's premier cultural venues, claiming that expert assessments presented to the presiding judge had identified rotting structural beams, parking facilities at risk of collapse and multiple life-safety deficiencies throughout the building. He argued that the centre needed not only structural repairs but a comprehensive aesthetic overhaul to bring it up to acceptable standards.
At the centre of the dispute is Judge Cooper, who declined to order the closure of the Kennedy Center despite receiving the structural assessments outlined by the administration. Trump expressed sharp displeasure with the ruling, stating that the judge had allowed a situation where public danger was permitted to continue in plain sight and suggesting that Cooper should be ashamed of the decision to keep the venue operational.
In justifying his withdrawal from the situation, Trump drew a contrast between what he characterised as his record of successful construction and renovation projects, including restoration work on Washington monuments and fountains through the Department of the Interior, and the obstacles he said he faced in attempting to overhaul the performing arts centre. He described almost all performing arts centres across the country as institutions that lose large sums of money.
The transfer, if completed, would shift responsibility for the operation, maintenance and management of the Kennedy Center entirely to Congress, removing the executive branch from direct oversight of the institution. The announcement is likely to spark debate about the future of federal support for the arts in the United States and raises questions about whether lawmakers will allocate the resources necessary to address the structural concerns that the president highlighted in his statement.