Lawmaker: Judge Rules Kennedy Center Renaming Unlawful in Beatty v. Trump

A lawmaker said a federal judge has found the Kennedy Center trustees acted unlawfully when they renamed the institution to include Donald Trump's name. "On 05/30/2026, Judge Cooper ruled that the Kennedy Center trustees acted unlawfully when they renamed the institution to include Donald Trump's name," the lawmaker said.

The speaker told the body they had filed the lawsuit Beatty v Trump on Dec. 22, 2025, challenging the trustees' action after saying they were muted during a Dec. 18, 2025 virtual meeting when the vote to change the name occurred. "During the 12/18/2025 virtual meeting, I was muted, silencing me when the vote occurred to change the name," the lawmaker said. The transcript does not include a vote tally or the names of trustees who voted.

The remarks connect the court ruling to the earlier trustee vote and the speaker's litigation. The speaker framed the lawsuit as an attempt to hold officials accountable: "I filed the lawsuit, Beatty v Trump, in federal court to remind the president that there are consequences for unlawful actions," the lawmaker said. There was no response or additional procedural detail about the trustee vote provided in the remarks. The speaker concluded by noting the judicial decision while urging attention to rule-of-law concerns.

The speaker's statement includes the dates of the meeting (Dec. 18, 2025), the filing (Dec. 22, 2025), and the judge's ruling (May 30, 2026). It does not provide a trustee vote tally, the motion text used at the trustee meeting, or which trustees voted for or against the change.