Photographs smuggled out from behind tarp-covered scaffolding at the Kennedy Center reveal what President Donald Trump has spent nine days trying to hide.
His name is gone.
The images, first obtained by activist group Hands Off the Arts and independently verified by The Washington Post, show two rows of blank square panels on the performing arts venue’s marble facade, where Trump’s name had been affixed since December.
“This is the picture the Trump administration does not want anyone to see, so it’s all the more important … that people have an opportunity to witness when they’re winning,” said Mallory Miller, co-founder of Hands Off the Arts.
The name came down in the early morning hours of June 14. A 14-member crew completed the court-ordered removal around 3 a.m., hours past the judicial deadline. Rather than pull back the scaffolding and let the public see the results, the Kennedy Center left tarps and barricades up, with security guards blocking any view of the facade. A spokeswoman said the scaffolding “will remain up as crews address maintenance needs of the marble and soffit panels.”
The tarp cover was “starting to arouse suspicion,” with some questioning whether the name had actually been removed.
U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper ruled last month that Trump’s board had violated federal law when it voted to rename the venue. Only Congress, which created the Kennedy Center, has the authority to change its name.
Lawyers for Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-OH), whose lawsuit forced the removal, accused Trump’s allies on the board of willfully sabotaging the facade in “a petty act of defiance.” Trump had railed against the court order on social media, vowing he had “no interest” in continuing what he called a “hopeless journey.”
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