WASHINGTON, D.C.— In a new filing today, Congresswoman Joyce Beatty (OH-03) requested the district court reject and reverse the Trump administration’s illegal renaming of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Beatty is represented by Democracy Defenders Action and the Washington Litigation Group.

In her partial summary judgment motion, Beatty argues that the Kennedy Center’s name is set by federal law to memorialize John F. Kennedy, only Congress may change its name, and that the Board had no authority to rename this treasured institution after President Trump. As the filing explains, the statute is clear: the Center is “designated” as the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and maintained as a living memorial to John F. Kennedy.

“Donald Trump’s attempt to rename the Kennedy Center after himself is not just an act of ego. It is an attempt to subvert our Constitution and the rule of law. Congress established the Kennedy Center by law, and only Congress can change its name,” said Congresswoman Beatty. “The Kennedy Center is a national institution with a long tradition of bipartisan support. It is not an opportunity for President Trump to expand his personal brand. We will not let this stand.”

“Congress created the John F. Kennedy Center as a living memorial to President Kennedy. Neither Donald Trump nor his handpicked cronies on the Board has the power to ignore the law by renaming or closing it,” said Amb. Norm Eisen (ret.), co-founder and board member of Democracy Defenders Action and Nathaniel Zelinsky, senior counsel at the Washington Litigation Group. “We are asking the court to enforce the law and reverse this illegal renaming and shut down. This abuse of power is an attack on rule of law and the memory of John Kennedy and cannot stand.”

In a supplemental brief supporting her motion for a preliminary injunction, Beatty also asks the court to block the planned two-year shutdown of the Kennedy Center, arguing that the closure was approved through a reckless and legally deficient process. The filing says documents produced under court order show there was no genuine year-long expert review, no meaningful outside consultation, and no adequate basis for closing the Center in July, despite what Donald Trump claimed when he announced the shutdown on Feb. 1. It further argues that the trustees' decision to rubber stamp Donald Trump’s decision violated their legal fiduciary duties.

Beatty first sued in December 2025 after Trump and his allies moved to rename the Kennedy Center. Earlier this month, she sought emergency relief after the Board moved toward a two-year closure beginning in July. On March 16, the District Court issued a temporary restraining order requiring the government to provide Beatty critical documents about the shutdown and to allow her to participate in a Board meeting on March 16, 2026.

Today’s filing is available here.

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Democracy Defenders Action brings together a nonpartisan team to work with national, state and local allies across the country to defend in real-time the foundations of our democracy.

The Washington Litigation Group is a nonpartisan team of attorneys dedicated to defending individuals and institutions that have been unlawfully targeted for exercising their legal rights and to fighting against governmental overreach.