Donald Trump’s plans for Kennedy Center – now the controversially rechristened “Trump Kennedy Center” – haven’t worked out. An institution designed as a beacon for American cultural excellence has been brutally disfigured into a MAGA monument to all things Trump: the board hollowed out and replaced by flunkies, artistic expression curtailed, and his stupid name scrawled across the sign.
Over the last few months, a raft of artists have canceled performances at the center for political reasons. Most prominently, renowned composer Philip Glass called off the world premiere of his symphony about Abraham Lincoln, saying:
“Symphony No. 15 is a portrait of Abraham Lincoln, and the values of the Kennedy Center today are in direct conflict with the message of the Symphony. Therefore, I feel an obligation to withdraw this Symphony premiere from the Kennedy Center under its current leadership.”
With rock bottom ticket sales, artists refusing to play, and a general awful vibe about the place it’s abundantly clear that Trump’s actions have obliterated the Kennedy Center’s reputation in just a few short months. But why stop at just its reputation? Why not obliterate the building itself?
Smashing time
Taking to Truth Social, Trump announced that the Kennedy Center will be reduced to rubble as part of a “complete rebuild”, which will take “approximately” two years. Trump dismisses the current building as “tired, broken, and dilapidated”, saying that it’ll eventually re-open “far better than it has ever been before”.
Uh-huh. You don’t have to be a brain genius to figure out Trump’s true motivations here. The “Trump Kennedy Center” has become an albatross around his neck, a perpetual source of negative news, and objective proof that his vain ambitions are destroying a fine cultural institution.
What better way to nip that story in the bud than by simply canceling everything, locking the doors, and bringing in a wrecking ball to smash the place to smithereens? It should go without saying that it’s wildly optimistic to think that the Kennedy Center can be demolished and fully rebuilt within two years, so expect this to drag on much longer than anticipated (and cost a lot more money than he admits).
On top of that, presumably every single member of staff now working there will lose their jobs during this reconstruction, leaving potentially hundreds of people out of work.
But who’s going to stop him? Trump is busy jabbing an ice pick into the nation’s brain in the hopes of conducting a full lobotomy, and it seems there’s literally nobody with the power or will to hold him back.
Published: Feb 2, 2026 06:13 am