WASHINGTON (AP) — A judge on Thursday expressed skepticism about the Kennedy Center’s intention to return President Donald Trump’s name to the historic performing arts venue by early next month, challenging the board’s insistence on moving forward even in the face of a court ruling that blocked and reversed a previous effort.Just seconds after the Trump administration’s lawyer, Bradley Mayers, began making his case at a nearly two-hour hearing, U.S. District Court Judge Christopher Cooper interrupted to ask why the center needed to begin inscribing the president’s name on the institution’s facade as soon as Sept. 8.“What’s magic about that date?” Cooper asked, quipping that sometimes judges travel over the Labor Day holiday.Mayers responded that the timeline was in accordance with a vote earlier this month by the Trump-aligned board. As he returned to his arguments that renovations at the Kennedy Center require energy and talent, Cooper interjected again.
“That’s all fine and good,” the judge said. “What does that have to do with what Congress intended in these statutes? That’s really what’s before me.”Trump has spent much of his second term reshaping Washington to his liking, demolishing the East Wing of the White House to make way for a ballroom, planning a triumphal arch near Arlington National Cemetery and a renovated golf course along the Potomac River. The Kennedy Center is a rare stumbling block in that effort after Cooper ruled in May that Trump’s name was added to the building illegally, ordering it to be removed.
