A handful of entertainers at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., have decided to hit the exits now that President Donald Trump has taken the center over.
The Kennedy Center dates back to 1958, when President Dwight Eisenhower, a Republican, signed a bill making it America’s “National Cultural Center.” Because of its legislative origins and public funding, the Kennedy Center effectively remains under the control of the president, who has the power to appoint members to its board of trustees.
Now that Trump is back in the Oval Office, he has attempted to rid the center of some of the woke capture. “Just last year, the Kennedy Center featured Drag Shows specifically targeting our youth — THIS WILL STOP,” he wrote on Truth Social last week.
Trump also promised to usher in a new “Golden Age in Arts and Culture” at the Kennedy Center, which Trump characterized as “an American jewel.”
“THE BEST IS YET TO COME!”
To that end, Trump fired all 18 board members nominated by Democrat presidents. The ousted members include former White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and former Biden adviser Mike Donilon, both of whom were appointed just before President Joe Biden left office, NPR reported.
In their place, Trump has appointed several MAGA allies, including his chief of staff, Susie Wiles, and Usha Vance, the wife of Vice President JD Vance. By Wednesday, the board had unanimously voted Trump to be chairman.
In response, the center issued a statement, noting that while these shake-ups were unusual, they were by no means illegal. “There is nothing in the center’s 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’s board,” the statement said.
‘America voted against paying attention to your public tantrums a few months ago.’
In revamping the performing arts center, Trump has merely exercised his prerogatives as president and begun fulfilling a major campaign promise to rid the swamp of leftist ideology. However, several entertainers obviously disagreed with the drag-free direction the center is heading and decided to show themselves out.
Shonda Rhimes, the 55-year-old TV executive best known for “Grey’s Anatomy,” was the among the first to announce her resignation. On Wednesday, Rhimes posted to Instagram a screenshot of an article about her resignation as well as a brief quote from the center’s namesake, President John F. Kennedy: “If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his vision wherever it takes him.”
Ben Folds — best known as the lead singer of Ben Folds Five, whose song about the pain of abortion, “Brick,” was a smash hit in the mid-1990s — tendered his resignation from the center’s National Symphony Orchestra as well. “Given developments at the Kennedy Center, effective today, I am resigning as artistic director to the NSO,” he posted to Instagram.
Soprano opera singer Renee Fleming, who won more than a dozen Grammys and was featured on the soundtracks of major films like “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” and “The Shape of Water,” also stepped away from her role as artistic adviser at large.
“I’ve treasured the bi-partisan support for this institution as a beacon of America at our best,” she said in a statement. “I hope the Kennedy Center continues to flourish and serve the passionate and diverse audience in our nation’s capital and across the country.”
After she was given the hook, former President Deborah Rutter likewise issued a lengthy statement full of histrionics about the inimitable importance of arts and culture. “Much like our democracy itself, artistic expression must be nurtured, fostered, prioritized, and protected,” she wrote. “It is not a passive endeavor; indeed, there is no clearer sign of American democracy at work than our artists, the work they produce, and audiences’ unalienable right to actively participate.”
Richard Grenell, ambassador to Germany during Trump’s first term, has since been appointed interim executive director. “RIC, WELCOME TO SHOW BUSINESS!” Trump posted to Truth Social Monday night.
For his part, Blaze Media Align managing editor Matt Himes seems excited about the departure of so many anti-Trump, “self-important celebrities” who have “spent the last decade ruining” everything from music and literature to comedy and commercials.
“Go ahead and quit, but America voted against paying attention to your public tantrums a few months ago,” he told Blaze News in a statement. “You guys are like phones going off in a theater once the lights go down. Time to put yourselves in airplane mode so the rest of us can enjoy the show in peace.”
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Donald trump, Kennedy center, John f. kennedy, Performing arts, Drag show, Shonda rhimes, Ben folds, Renee fleming, Matt himes, Politics
