Updated Sept. 17, 2026, 9:33 p.m. ET
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump was captured in photos reading a posterboard inside Air Force One that appears to say “Kennedy Center DEMOLISHED,” raising questions about his intentions with the iconic institution if the president’s name is not allowed on the building.
The photos, taken by Getty Images on Sept. 16, came hours after Trump told reporters that the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts will “end up being ripped down” unless major renovations are undertaken. Trump and Kennedy Center officials aligned with the president say the center’s poor condition poses safety concerns for visitors that require a major overhaul.
In the photos, taken through a window after Trump landed at Joint Base Andrews following a campaign trip to North Carolina, the president is seen looking directly at a poster with “Kennedy Center DEMOLISHED” written in large red letters. Below the phrase appears to be an image of the center, although the content is not entirely clear.
Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, the plaintiff in a lawsuit against Trump over the Kennedy Center, cited the photo in a federal court filing as she seeks an emergency court hearing for a judge to consider halting the closure of the center.
The White House did not respond to a request for comment seeking an explanation for the poster.
The Kennedy Center’s board, composed mostly of Trump loyalists, with the president serving as chairman, voted on Sept. 15 to close the center immediately to undergo two-year renovations that Trump has vowed to help pay for. Kennedy Center staff installed fencing around the building shortly after the vote’s action.
But Trump wants recognition in return for his financial support. After the board’s vote to close the center, Trump warned that he won’t pursue the renovations unless U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper’s decision this week keeping his name off the center’s building is overturned on appeal.
Cooper ruled that the Kennedy Center’s plan to add an inscription on the building that says “renovated and restored by Donald J. Trump” cannot move forward. The judge said the inscription violates his previous order in May to remove Trump’s name from the center’s title and signage and violates the 1964 law that created the center to honor President Kennedy after his assassination.
Congress has approved $257 million for renovations. But Trump and the Justice Department argue that without the president’s additional fundraising aiming for more than $100 million, the work can’t be completed.
Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison.
Leave a Reply