The Kennedy family reacted angrily after the White House announced the Kennedy Center board had voted to add President Trump’s name to the institution. Maria Shriver called the reported renaming “beyond comprehension,” stressing the center honors John F. Kennedy’s support for the arts. Joe Kennedy III pointed out the center is a federal living memorial and argued it cannot be casually renamed, while Jack Schlossberg disputed the claim the vote was unanimous.
‘Speechless and Enraged’: Kennedy Family Condemns White House Plan To Add Trump’s Name To Kennedy Center
Members of the Kennedy family sharply criticized a White House announcement that the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts may be renamed to include President Donald Trump’s name.
On Thursday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said she had been informed that the Kennedy Center board “voted unanimously to rename the Kennedy Center to the Trump-Kennedy Center, because of the unbelievable work President Trump has done over the last year in saving the building.” Leavitt credited Trump not only with reconstruction efforts but also with stabilizing the center’s finances and restoring its reputation.
“I have just been informed that the highly respected Board of the Kennedy Center, some of the most successful people from all parts of the world, have just voted unanimously to rename the Kennedy Center to the Trump-Kennedy Center, because of the unbelievable work President Trump has done over the last year in saving the building.” — Karoline Leavitt
The Kennedy Center was established by federal law as a living memorial to the 35th president, John F. Kennedy, who was assassinated in 1963. That legal status was highlighted in responses from multiple family members who said a sitting president could not casually rebrand a federally named memorial.
Maria Shriver, JFK’s niece, reacted on social media with incredulity and anger. She described the reported renaming as “beyond comprehension,” reminding readers that the center honors her uncle’s longtime support for the arts and culture.
“The Kennedy Center was named after my uncle, President John F. Kennedy. It was named in his honor. He was a man who was interested in the arts, interested in culture, interested in education, language, history. He brought the arts into the White House, and he and my Aunt Jackie amplified the arts, celebrated the arts, stood up for the arts and artists.” — Maria Shriver
Shriver warned that attaching a sitting president’s name to a memorial dedicated to another president was inappropriate and undignified. She suggested that similar actions could target other national sites, writing that the move felt obsessive and beneath the office.
Joe Kennedy III, the former U.S. representative and JFK’s grandnephew, emphasized the center’s legal status, saying it “can no sooner be renamed than can someone rename the Lincoln Memorial.”
Jack Schlossberg, son of Caroline Kennedy and a Democratic congressional candidate in New York, disputed Leavitt’s claim that the board vote was unanimous. Schlossberg said microphones were muted during the meeting and that the vote was not unanimous, framing the reported renaming as politically motivated.
“Microphones were muted and the board meeting and vote NOT unanimous.” — Jack Schlossberg
The report and family responses were first published by Mediaite. The proposal, as described by the White House, credits President Trump with helping save and restore the institution; the Kennedy family’s responses underscore legal and ethical concerns about renaming a federally designated memorial.
