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August 20, 2026 / 2:45 PM EDT
/ CBS News
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Washington — While President Trump fights in court over his remaking of the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts and construction of the White House ballroom, plans for the two Washington institutions are moving ahead.Now, the latest court filings in those cases are providing a window into the scope of work taking place at the White House on the site of the now-demolished East Room and Mr. Trump's visions for the Kennedy Center.At the White House, the ballroom project involves millions of pounds of steel and rebar, miles of conduit and a crew of more than 200 working nearly around the clock. And at the Kennedy Center, its board of trustees has advanced a plan to put Mr. Trump's name back on the building following its court-ordered removal and to honor him in at least one other way.The Kennedy CenterA status report filed Wednesday with the U.S. district court in Washington provides a peek into changes to the performing arts center that its board of trustees agreed last week to undertake.The board is stacked with Mr. Trump's allies and administration officials, and chaired by the president himself. It voted last week to add Mr. Trump's name to the Kennedy Center's facade, a move that came two months after U.S. District Judge Chris Cooper ruled the board acted unlawfully when it put the president's name on the building last year.
