US Court denies Trump's last-ditch attempt to rename Kennedy Center after himself

US Court denies Trump's last-ditch attempt to rename Kennedy Center after himself A three-judge panel has rejected the Kennedy Center's request to put Donald Trump's name back on the institution's white marble facade during an appeals process over its removal A three-judge panel has ruled that Donald Trump cannot put his name back on the white marble façade of the Kennedy Center while an appeal over its removal is ongoing. The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit rejected a request by the Kennedy Center's board of trustees - chaired by Trump - to keep the president's name on the institution pending its appeal against a ruling requiring the performing arts centre to remove it. The institution was renamed The Donald J Trump and The John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts earlier this year - a change branded illegal in a ruling by US District Judge Christopher Cooper in May. He said only Congress has the authority to rename the centre and ordered Trump's name removed. The Trump administration complied after its attempts to block the ruling failed. While the president's name was removed from the institution's façade and signage last month, the change remains hidden from public view behind a tarp. In its ruling of Wednesday, the panel of judges wrote that the board's request "failed to show how they will be irreparably injured" if Trump’s name remains off the building through the appeal process. The board had argued that the removal "threatens to impede" fundraising efforts, but the judges found that claim came without the support of "specific facts or evidence". When Trump first took office in 2025, he replaced the Kennedy Center’s board of trustees, who then named him chairman. The lawsuit was brought by Joyce Beatty, a Democratic representative from Ohio and Kennedy Center board member. Reacting to Wednesday's ruling, Congresswoman Beatty said: "Today’s ruling again affirms that this administration’s efforts to rename the Kennedy Center were unlawful." She added: "His name no longer desecrates this sacred memorial, which belongs to the American people. Now it is time for the Trump administration to accept this, comply with the law, and take the tarps down." Last month, onlookers gathered on the plaza in front of the centre hoping to witness the dramatic moment the signage was removed. However, a tarp hung over the scaffolding constructed for workers to perform the task concealed it.