Trump Visits Kennedy Center as New Chair, Announces Plans to Overhaul Venue

WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump visited the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on March 17 to attend a board meeting as the new chair, a month after making a sweeping leadership shakeup at the Washington-based arts institution.

“I’m very disappointed,” Trump told reporters after touring the Kennedy Center.

He said the facility was “in tremendous disrepair,” mostly due to poor management.

He criticized the previous management for spending $250 million to build underground rooms, calling it “a terrible waste.”

“We’ll make it great again,” he said, adding that he would work with Congress to secure the funding needed.

In early February, Trump ousted the institution’s leadership and appointed new members to the board of trustees, who elected him chairman.

In 1958, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed legislation to create a National Cultural Center.

President John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy were substantial supporters of the project, launching a $30 million fundraising campaign for its construction in November 1962.

Two months after JFK’s assassination in November 1963, President Lyndon Johnson signed an act of Congress into law designating the center as a living memorial to JFK.

Trump said that the Kennedy Center is critical because it represents a “very important part” of the nation’s capital and the country.

He urged Americans to “come here and watch” the performances, adding that over time, they would witness positive changes at the venue.

“It’ll improve very greatly physically. And we’re going to get some very good shows,” he said.

The arts center is supported by government funds and private donations.

Trump replaced David Rubenstein, billionaire philanthropist and co-founder of the investment firm The Carlyle Group, as chair of the Kennedy Center.

In a February Truth Social post, Trump described the center as an “American Jewel” that had been tarnished by hosting drag shows and other programs he deemed counter to traditional American values.

In addition to Trump, more than a dozen new board members were appointed to the center.

Some of the new appointees present at the board meeting included Second Lady Usha Vance, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, singer-songwriter Lee Greenwood, Fox News host Laura Ingraham, Fox Business anchor Maria Bartiromo, and special U.S. envoy Ric Grenell.

Trump recently appointed Grenell as the president of the Kennedy Center.

In an interview with The Epoch Times, Grenell outlined Trump’s vision for the performing arts venue.

He said that Trump believes, as an arts institution that receives federal funding, the center must “give the public what they want.”

“You should do big blockbuster musicals. You should do the traditional Nutcracker at Christmastime. You should do the big art things that appeal to the masses,” he said.

He indicated that this new plan would also help solve the center’s monetary issues.

“The financial situation is dire,” Grenell stated, also noting that the building is “in really dire shape” due to deferred maintenance and the center’s lack of funds for proper maintenance.

The Washington mainstay “should be the premier center in the nation’s capital for the arts,” Grenell said.

The Kennedy Center made headlines recently after a fake bomb threat targeting Shen Yun Performing Arts led to an evacuation of the venue on Feb. 20. This incident was the latest in a series of threats faced by the world-renowned classical Chinese dance company over the past year. The New York-based arts group, which showcases what it calls “China before communism,” has been a frequent target of the Chinese Communist Party.

“Don’t disrupt it,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a March 17 press briefing. “This administration will take that very seriously and hold you accountable.

“We obviously condemn any violence or threats of violence against American institutions,” she said.

Jan Jekielek and Tom Ozimek contributed to this report.