{"id":43220,"date":"2025-02-10T19:44:34","date_gmt":"2025-02-11T00:44:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/entertainment\/trump-names-richard-grenell-interim-leader-of-kennedy-center\/10\/02\/2025\/"},"modified":"2025-02-10T19:44:34","modified_gmt":"2025-02-11T00:44:34","slug":"trump-names-richard-grenell-interim-leader-of-kennedy-center","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/entertainment\/trump-names-richard-grenell-interim-leader-of-kennedy-center\/10\/02\/2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump Names Richard Grenell Interim Leader of Kennedy Center"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\n<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-0\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">President Trump announced in a post on social media Monday that he was appointing Richard Grenell as the \u201cinterim executive director\u201d of the Kennedy Center in Washington. Mr. Grenell, who was Mr. Trump\u2019s ambassador to Germany during the first Trump administration, is one of his most fiercely loyal apparatchiks.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The president wrote that <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/05\/25\/us\/politics\/grenell-trump-cabinet.html\" title=\"\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Mr. Grenell<\/a> \u201cshares my Vision for a GOLDEN AGE of American Arts and Culture\u201d and would be overseeing \u201cdaily operations\u201d to ensure there was no more \u201cANTI-AMERICAN PROPAGANDA.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The appointment was just the latest in a series of moves designed to strengthen Mr. Trump\u2019s grip on the performing arts center in Washington.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">He kicked off a purge Friday night, when Mr. Trump announced <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/02\/07\/us\/politics\/trump-kennedy-center.html\" title=\"\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">his intent to gut the Kennedy Center\u2019s board<\/a> and install himself as chairman. He had denounced the center\u2019s programming choices.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-1\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">On Monday, 18 board members and the board chairman were removed from an official roster on the center\u2019s website. The excised members were appointees of Mr. Trump\u2019s predecessor, Joseph R. Biden Jr. The board\u2019s chairman, David M. Rubenstein, was also removed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mr. Rubenstein, a financier who was initially appointed to the board by former President George W. Bush, has given $111 million to the center over the years, making him the biggest donor in its history.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">It was not immediately clear what Mr. Grenell\u2019s placement meant for Deborah F. Rutter, the president of the Kennedy Center, who had <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/01\/27\/arts\/music\/deborah-rutter-leaving-kennedy-center.html\" title=\"\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">announced last month<\/a> that she planned to step down at the end of the year.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">During Mr. Trump\u2019s first term he broke with precedent and <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/08\/27\/arts\/trump-kennedy-center-honors.html\" title=\"\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">declined to attend the Kennedy Center Honors<\/a> after some honorees at the annual awards show criticized him. Mr. Trump is known to have had a friendly relationship with Mr. Rubenstein, and they have dined together in the past. Mr. Rubenstein declined to comment.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The Kennedy Center did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the changes. According to the center\u2019s website, the board currently has 17 members, all of them appointees of Mr. Trump. No chairman is listed.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-2\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mr. Trump stunned the cultural world on Friday when he announced plans to bring the Kennedy Center more firmly under his control.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cAt my direction, we are going to make the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., GREAT AGAIN,\u201d Mr. Trump <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/@realDonaldTrump\/posts\/113964959500715895\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">wrote on Truth Social<\/a>, his social media platform.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Speaking with reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday, Mr. Trump defended his plan, saying of the center, \u201cI want to make sure it runs properly.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cWe don\u2019t need woke at the Kennedy Center,\u201d he added. \u201cSome of the shows were terrible. They were a disgrace that they were even put on. So I\u2019ll be there until such time as it gets to be running right.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The center oversees the Washington National Opera and the National Symphony Orchestra and also presents comedy, hip-hop, ballet and theater, staging some 2,000 performances each year. The center\u2019s budget totaled $268 million last year, including about $43 million in federal aid. The federal money is not spent on programming but on operations, maintenance and capital repair, since the center is a living memorial to former President John F. Kennedy.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mr. Trump said he had not seen any shows at the center recently. \u201cThere was nothing I wanted to see,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-3\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mr. Trump said in his post on social media that \u201cjust last year, the Kennedy Center featured Drag Shows specifically targeting our youth \u2014 THIS WILL STOP.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">That appeared to be a reference to a drag-themed show the center hosted last year called \u201cDragtastic Dress-up,\u201d which was aimed at \u201cLGBTQ+ youth under 18,\u201d according to marketing materials.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The members removed on Monday include some of Mr. Biden\u2019s closest aides \u2014 Karine Jean-Pierre, the former White House press secretary, and the political strategist Mike Donilon \u2014 as well as artists including the singer and songwriter Jon Batiste.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Hilda L. Solis, a Los Angeles County Supervisor who has been removed from the board, said in a statement that she looked forward to \u201ccontinuing to champion the arts as a tool for equity, healing, and positive change, both locally and nationally.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">On Monday, the Kennedy Center removed a statement from its website that it issued on Friday in the wake of Mr. Trump\u2019s comments.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cPer the center\u2019s governance established by Congress in 1958, the chair of the board of trustees is appointed by the center\u2019s board members,\u201d the statement had said. \u201cThere is nothing in the center\u2019s statute that would prevent a new administration from replacing board members; however, this would be the first time such action has been taken with the Kennedy Center\u2019s board.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-4\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The center has also in recent days scrubbed its site of references to diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. Mr. Trump has taken aim at such programs, issuing an executive order calling the initiatives \u201cillegal and immoral.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In an interview shortly after Mr. Trump\u2019s inauguration last month, Mr. Rubenstein said he did not expect the Kennedy Center to be a priority for the new administration.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cI don\u2019t think they are focused on the Kennedy Center that much, but I hope they recognize how great it is,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mr. Rubenstein expressed optimism about working with Mr. Trump, saying the two had spoken since the election, but not about the center.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cI\u2019ve talked to President Trump over the years about the Kennedy Center,\u201d he added. \u201cHe knows its virtues.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mr. Rubenstein said at the time that he expected the center\u2019s bipartisan tradition to continue.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cWe just try to be as apolitical as possible,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd it\u2019s worked out for 50 years, and I suspect it will continue.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/02\/10\/arts\/music\/trump-kennedy-center-board-removed.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>President Trump announced in a post on social media Monday that he was appointing Richard Grenell as the &ldquo;interim executive director&rdquo; of<br \/><button class=\"read-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/entertainment\/trump-names-richard-grenell-interim-leader-of-kennedy-center\/10\/02\/2025\/\">Read More &rsaquo;<\/a><\/button><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":43222,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43220"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43220"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43220\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43222"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43220"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43220"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43220"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}