Trump administration threatens to demolish Kennedy Center if renovations are blocked

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Today's Top Stories - August 25, 2026

Today's Top Stories - August 25, 2026

The Trump administration on Monday threatened to demolish the Kennedy Center if a judge determines that the renowned performing arts center cannot close for a two-year renovation. 

In court filings on Monday, Justice Department attorney Brantley T. Mayers repeatedly referred to the Kennedy Center as a “decrepit” structure in dire need of renovations led by the Trump administration. 

Mayers said without renovations, the site will “deteriorate further into an unsafe, decrepit structure that will be required to be taken down, with a determination to follow on what to build on the........

© The Hill