Skip It: Trump Visits Kennedy Center To Promote His MAGA-Fied Takeover Of The Arts

On Monday (March 17), President Donald Trump paid his first visit to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts since he ousted leadership and essentially appointed himself chairman of the D.C. arts institution. (Technically, there was a vote, but it was like if Scar from The Lion King was elected to chair of a board full of hyenas who hadn’t figured out they were being scammed yet.)

During the presser, Trump generally ignored the onslaught of esteemed artists — including Issa Rae, screenwriter Shonda Rhimes, and Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda — who either canceled major shows at the Kennedy Center or cut ties with the institution altogether because they didn’t appreciate Trump using the highest office in the country to bully-foot his way into controlling the arts.

Instead, Trump appeared to focus on the physical condition of the building, and, of course, how he was going to save the venue by making it less “woke.”

From CNN:

“It’s in tremendous disrepair, as is a lot of the rest of our country, most of it because of bad management,” said Trump, who was elected chair last month by a newly constituted board, including several new Trump appointees who replaced trustees appointed by Democratic presidents.

Trump’s visit comes as he’s has sought to reshape the renowned arts institution – installing political loyalists in top leadership positions and criticizing its programming for being “woke.”

Trump on Monday called the Kennedy Center a “very big part of the fabric of Washington, DC,” adding, “We’re going to make our capitol great again, just like we’re going to make our country great again.”

At the board meeting – over which Trump presided on stage in the Opera House auditorium – he was flanked by more members, including Interim Executive Director Ric Grenell, second lady Usha Vance, interim Vice Chair Jennifer Fischer, Attorney General Pam Bondi and White House chief of staff Susie Wiles. Fox News anchors Maria Bartiromo and Laura Ingraham also attended, among others.

“The great Laura Ingraham,” Trump said off the top. “We’ve got a lot of power on this board.” It wasn’t just Trump’s close confidantes, however. Also on hand was DC Mayor Muriel Bowser.

On his tour of the facility, Trump specifically targeted the center’s appearance.

“You look at the columns outside, you look at they’re supposed to be covered by something, whether it’s marble, or whatever, granite. They were never covered. They were painted. But bring it into more modern times, a lot of money has been given to it, and the money has not been properly spent,” Trump told reporters.

CNN noted that the Kennedy Center’s website description says “the façade boasts Italian marble imported from three quarries, while the painted bronze exterior pillars mimic similar pillars featured as part of the US Embassy in Delhi, India. Both the Kennedy Center and the embassy were designed by American architect Edward Durell Stone.” But, hey, Trump got to be president without having any previous experience in any of the three branches of government, and he got to chair the Kennedy Center without any experience in the arts. Why shouldn’t he also be able to expertly critique the appearance of the center just because he also has no experience in architecture?

Anyway, we all know Trump’s hostile takeover of the Kennedy Center has nothing to do with the venue’s outside appearance. Last month, he declared his intention to hit the center with a MAGA overhaul that prioritizes white conservative-friendly art. (And we all know how popular jingoism, forced patriotism and thinly-veiled white nationalism are in the art world, amirite?)

Before Trump’s appearance, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that he “hopes to restore arts and culture that embrace American tradition, not disparage it, as we have unfortunately seen over the past several years.” In other words, Trump will abuse his leadership role to seize control of the mainstream culture and force art institutions to make the kind of art he likes. You know, there was once another world leader from Germany who did the same thing. (I forget his name, but Kanye West is a big fan of his and Elon Musk completely jacked his method of waving at people.)

Leavitt also said Trump would “perhaps be discussing some future plays and musicals and theatrical programs that the center will be hosting under his new leadership.” But he’s apparently not disappointed Hamilton won’t be one of those musicals, as he offered a petty response to the show’s producers canceling their show at the center.

“I never liked Hamilton very much,” he said.

To be fair, there was that one time his first VP, Mike Pence, got booed and heckled while attending a Hamilton show in New York, and Trump responded by demanding the cast and producers “apologize” and that the theater be made a “safe place” for, well, white-and-fragile right-wingers who call everyone else “snowflakes” whenever they call for anything to be a safe space.

So, maybe that’s what his takeover of the Kennedy Center is all about: creating a safe space for white nationalists and pseudo-patriots to enjoy whatever it is they call art.

Sad.