This live coverage of the Kennedy Center hearing was made possible by All Rise News subscribers.
After failing once to inscribe his name on the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the second time likely isn’t the charm for Donald Trump.
During a roughly two-hour hearing, U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper made clear that he’s likely to issue a restraining order if the government doesn’t ditch its self-imposed Sept. 8 deadline to move ahead on a recent Kennedy Center resolution. The Trump Justice Department would not specify exactly what will happen on that date, but it could involve starting construction on inscriptions on the building reading “Renovated and Restored by President Donald J. Trump” and “Endowed by the Trump Kennedy Center Fund.”
Trump made his latest plan to make himself the focus of a $250 million renovation of the Kennedy Center such an administration priority that Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick attended the hearing — after holding a press conference about the cultural landmark’s supposed financial and structural crisis.
After Michael Popok shared a clip from that conference, I described what unfolded inside the courtroom, where Lutnick sat in the first row of the gallery. Cooper, quietly and systematically, laid the groundwork to take action.
Although the Kennedy Center’s programming has been paused indefinitely, the building itself remains open for free public tours. In the video, I describe how those public tours debunk the Trump administration’s messaging about the center and describe what’s likely next for the litigation.
Look out for a more detailed breakdown later in the evening.
