U.S. President Donald Trump inspects large print at the Kennedy Center aboard Air Force One after landing at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, on September 16, 2026.
Brendan Smialowski AFP | Getty Images
A new photo shows President Donald Trump staring at a poster that appears to refer to the demolition of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Hours later, President Donald Trump warned that if efforts to renovate the building were not properly evaluated, “it’s going to end up being demolished.”
Rep. Joyce Beatty, an Ohio Democrat who is battling Trump over his efforts to plaster her name on the Kennedy Center, notified a federal judge of the images and the president’s threats in a court filing Thursday morning.
A day earlier, Mr. Beatty asked Judge Christopher Cooper to schedule an emergency hearing in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., regarding the board’s “unlawful” closure of the Kennedy Center in violation of Mr. Cooper’s advance order.
“Plaintiff has filed this notice to inform the court of two new pieces of evidence that came to light last night,” Beatty’s attorney told Cooper in a Thursday filing.
“First, yesterday evening, in response to a reporter’s question about the Kennedy Center program, President Trump said, “I think the Trump administration should certainly be authorized in order for the Trump administration to be involved, to work on it long-term, to implement it, or to raise the funds to implement it,” the filing states.
The lawyers pointed out that Trump said, “Frankly, if we don’t, we’re going to be shut down and ultimately demolished.”
“Separately, a photo circulated on social media of President Trump reading a placard reading ‘Destroy the Kennedy Center’ on Air Force One,” the lawyers added.
The filing included a copy of the photo and an enlarged version showing the word “DEMOLIS.”
“Given the urgency of this matter…the plaintiffs wanted to ensure that the court and the defendants were made aware of this new information,” Ms. Beatty’s attorney told Mr. Cooper.
Shortly afterward, the Justice Department told Cooper in its own court filing that Beatty’s request for a hearing should be denied, saying Matt Floca, the center’s executive director, had “decided on Wednesday to temporarily close the center due to ‘serious risks to public safety due to the center’s continued structural deterioration.'”
The closure will last seven days, unless extended, while Floca evaluates the safety risks, according to the executive director’s declaration submitted to the court by the Department of Justice.
Justice Department lawyers noted that Cooper in May enjoined President Trump and the board from taking action to effectuate the board’s March 16 decision to close the center for repairs and restoration. ”
“Pursuant to this order, Defendants intend to seek revocation of the preliminary injunction following two recent Board votes that would allow for the closure necessary to complete the repairs and renovations,” the Justice Department said.
“Nothing in the court’s preliminary injunction prohibits such temporary closure.”
1,” the filing states.
“There is no emergency created by Defendants’ temporary closure of the center. The only emergency is that the public, the center’s employees, and artists will be at risk if it remains fully open without additional safety evaluations,” Justice Department attorneys told Cooper.
Cooper has not yet decided whether to hold a hearing on the matter.
The center’s closure comes after Mr. Cooper on Tuesday rejected a new effort by the Kennedy Center board to have President Trump’s name on the center to commemorate plans to renovate the building. After Cooper issued his order, the board voted to close the center for renovations.
President Trump said late Tuesday that the center would close immediately and that no planned renovations or reconstruction would occur until a federal appeals court or the Supreme Court overturns Cooper’s original decision barring Trump’s name from being added to the center.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the photo.
“Closing the Kennedy Center without Judge Cooper’s approval appears to be in direct violation of Judge Cooper’s order. This is an attack on the rule of law,” Beatty’s attorney said in a statement Wednesday.
“The board cannot simply ignore Judge Cooper’s ruling whenever it sees fit. No one is above the law in this country, including the president,” said attorneys Norm Eisen and Nathaniel Zelinsky.
Two of former President Kennedy’s nieces criticized President Trump’s stance on centrist politics.
“This is a tragedy,” Kerry Kennedy, daughter of the late U.S. Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, said in an interview with CNN on Tuesday after the board of directors voted to close the building for renovations.
“The American people love the Kennedy Center, they love the arts, they understand what’s going on, and they’re witnessing this corruption,” Kennedy said. His younger brother, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is the Secretary of Health and Human Services in the Trump administration.
The same day, Maria Shriver, whose mother is President Kennedy’s sister, wrote in an X post: “And here we are. This statement by Trump breaks my heart.”
“What a sad situation for a sitting president to not let renovations go forward on public buildings unless he first puts his name on them. What a tragedy. In fact, how small-minded and how narcissistic,” Shriver wrote. “In fact, no great man, dedicated to public service and the common good, would act like this. This man will not rest until his name is forever linked to that of a great president, and he dedicated this building to his memory.”
“Imagine spending your hours and days focused on this while everyday Americans struggle to pay for health care, gas prices, rent, and food. Imagine spending your days focused on this while the war rages on under your leadership,” Shriver wrote.
