U.S. President Donald Trump was pictured reviewing a poster that appears to read, “Kennedy Center DEMOLISHED,” hours before his administration told a judge the arts institution had to be closed due to “structural deterioration” it characterized as posing “untenable risks” to safety. The images were captured through the window of Air Force One on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews as a dramatic legal battle plays out in court over the fate of the institution. CNN has reached out to the White House for comment on what Trump was reviewing and what exactly it said. In a filing submitted on Thursday morning, the administration said the closure of the Kennedy Center that began yesterday would be temporary and last for seven days. “Continued life-safety hazards to individuals who might access certain public portions of the building have created untenable risks to the health and safety of those individuals,” the Kennedy Center’s executive director Charles “Matt” Floca wrote in a sworn statement filed in DC District Court. The U.S. president had warned earlier Wednesday that the Kennedy Center would “end up being ripped down” without his support, adding, “It’s in very, very bad shape, very dangerous shape.” Trump has sought to rename the memorial to former U.S. president John F. Kennedy after himself, recasting it as the “Trump-Kennedy Center” last year. A judge ruled that only Congress can enact such a change and the name was removed from the building’s facade. The board, stacked with Trump allies, subsequently proposed alternatives to get his name reaffixed, such as by adding an inscription to thank him for leading renovations. It also voted this week to close the Kennedy Center’s doors for the renovations. However, officially closing the public monument violates a court order District Judge Casey Cooper issued requiring that the Kennedy Center remain open as a lawsuit brought by Democratic Rep. Joyce Beatty proceeds through his court. Beatty, who brought a lawsuit to stop the centre from being renamed, called the temporary closure “a plain pretext to justify shutting down the Center permanently,” in a legal response to the U.S. Justice Department’s filing. ‘Temporary’ closure As part of its filing, the administration included an email Floca sent to Kennedy Center staff on Wednesday. It said that damage inside the building happened during a severe storm in Washington, DC, on Sept. 4, and that the resulting destruction caused “imminent life-safety risks,” prompting the one-week building closure. “A large section of water-damaged plaster detached from the Grand Foyer ceiling and fell approximately 60 feet to the floor,” he wrote. The U.S. Justice Department, in its filing argued that since the closure is temporary, and the Kennedy Center board continues to pursue restoration and renovation, “there is no emergency” legally. “The only emergency is the risk to the public and the Center’s employees and artists if it remained fully open without further safety assessment,” it said. But lawyers for Beatty said there was no “meaningful information” that justified the sudden shutdown, calling the temporary closure “a recipe for Defendants extending their shutdown forever and closing the Kennedy Center for the next two years—the very thing this Court said they could not do without its permission.” Judge Cooper has not yet said what he will do in response to the flurry of developments. More legal battles ahead When CNN visited on Wednesday, no signage was visible indicating any change of status to the main building – despite the fences and barricades over the doors. A few security guards were outside as construction crews worked outside the building, where a fence with white curtains had been erected. Outside the main building, the digital advertising boards still hype upcoming shows, and a landscaper was pruning the hedges. Employees came and went through a parking garage entrance. One of them told CNN that their badge worked for getting into the building – but only on the side doors. A lone protestor stood outside with a sign that said: “There is still an injunction, remember?” And “shame on the Trump board.” Trump has argued that his administration “should be recognized” for taking on the financial burden of fixing what he called “a mess.” “For the Trump administration, for me, to get involved and to take that on long term and to carry it or to raise money to carry it, I think that the Trump administration should certainly have recognition,” he told reporters. The relative calm of the scene at the centre belied the drama that would continue to play out over the course of the coming day. Shortly after the administration’s Thursday morning filing, a group of eight architectural, preservation and civic organizations said they plan to file a separate lawsuit asking the court to provide independent protection and management of the Kennedy Center – including potentially a full receivership, which would be a drastic move if granted. “If the current leadership of the Kennedy Center is unwilling or unable to exercise its fiduciary duty to protect the historic building and the grounds of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the court should consider appointing a receiver or replacing that leadership,” they told reporters Thursday. “The irrevocable loss of this iconic building — whether by intent, neglect or mismanagement — appears increasingly possible.” The suit has yet to be filed, but the would-be plaintiffs said it would come soon. CNN’s Boer Deng contributed to this story.
