The Kennedy Center has released a statement after President Donald J. Trump announced that he would install himself as Chairman of the board and dismiss some of the current board members. He declared that he’d already replaced David Rubenstein, longtime leader of the Kennedy Center.
Trump wrote in part: “I have decided to immediately terminate multiple individuals from the Board of Trustees, including the Chairman, who do not share our Vision for a Golden Age in Arts and Culture.”
It’s unclear if Trump’s declaration of madness will stand up.
The Center said, “Throughout our history, the Kennedy Center has enjoyed strong support from members of Congress and their staffs—Republicans, Democrats, and Independents. Since our doors opened in 1971, we have had a collaborative relationship with every presidential administration. Since that time, the Kennedy Center has had a bi-partisan board of trustees that has supported the arts in a non-partisan fashion.”
It added, “While we are a living memorial to President Kennedy, we are also a unique public-private partnership. The Center is supported by federal annual appropriations for the upkeep and maintenance of the building as a federal memorial, or approximately 16% of the total operating budget. Support for the Center’s artistic programming comes from ticket sales, donations, rental income, and other revenue sources. The Kennedy Center is aware of the post made recently by POTUS on social media. We have received no official communications from the White House regarding changes to our board of trustees. We are aware that some members of our board have received termination notices from the administration.”
The statement concluded, “Per the Center’s governance established by Congress in 1958, the chair of the board of trustees is appointed by the Center’s board members. There is nothing in the Center’s statute that would prevent a new administration from replacing board members; however, this would be the first time such action has been taken with the Kennedy Center’s board.”
Trump has no cultural vision. He has no interest in the arts. This is just spite. If he thinks a right wing Kennedy Center Honors, with D level musicians who support him, will work, he’s wrong. But he doesn’t care. Destruction and mayhem are his only goals.
