On July 8, 2026, a three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit rejected President Donald Trump's appeal to reinstate his name on the Kennedy Center.
The court found that Trump and the Kennedy Center's board did not demonstrate that they would suffer irreparable harm from the removal of his name, which had been stripped in June following a lower court's ruling. The judges noted that the appellants failed to provide specific evidence that the center's fundraising would be adversely affected by the absence of Trump's name.
Furthermore, the panel dismissed claims regarding a new fundraising entity, stating that such arguments were not previously raised in district court and thus could not be considered. This ruling means that Trump's name will remain off the Kennedy Center while his appeal against the original removal order is pending.
The case highlights the legal complexities surrounding the naming rights of the Kennedy Center, which was established by Congress to honor President John F. Kennedy, and emphasizes the limitations of the board's authority to alter its name without congressional approval