# Streisand blasts Trump's Kennedy Center power play

> The legendary singer condemns the president's attempt to rename the iconic arts venue and his closure of it after losing a legal battle.
- Title: Streisand blasts Trump's Kennedy Center power play | Shortify
- Summary: The legendary singer condemns the president's attempt to rename the iconic arts venue and his closure of it after losing a legal battle. Trump's effort to…
- Keywords: barbra streisand, donald trump, kennedy center, name dispute, closure, federal judge, board vote, renovation, arts funding, democracy, Streisand, blasts
- Source: Rolling Stone — https://rollingstone.com/music/music-news/barbra-streisand-trump-kennedy-center-closure-1235628646
- Author: Charisma Madarang
- Published: 2026-09-18T02:37:57+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: barbra streisand, donald trump, kennedy center, name dispute, closure, federal judge, board vote, renovation, arts funding, democracy
## Trump tries to rename Kennedy Center
During his second term, President Trump pushed to add his name to the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, a living memorial to President John F. Kennedy.
## Judge blocks Trump's name on building
A federal judge blocked the Trump-appointed board from adding the president's name to the Kennedy Center's facade, halting the renaming effort.
## Trump covers facade with tarp
After losing the legal battle, Trump ordered a large tarp placed over the Kennedy Center's facade where his name would have appeared.

> a "humiliated Trump ordered a large tarp placed over the facade, where it remains today."
## Board votes to close Kennedy Center
Trump's board then voted to close the Kennedy Center, citing bankruptcy concerns and lack of funds to pay staff. Trump had also threatened to cancel a 257 million dollar renovation if his name wasn't added.
## Streisand condemns Trump's ego
Kennedy Center honoree Barbra Streisand called the battle over the center galling and painful, criticizing Trump's unchecked ego and his attack on an institution meant to celebrate art and democracy.

> "The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts has stood as one of America's great cultural venues."
## Art matters to democracy, Streisand says
Streisand emphasized that the Kennedy Center represents a belief in art's importance to democracy, quoting Kennedy's philosophy that when creativity cannot flourish freely, society loses its vitality.

> "when the creative impulse cannot flourish freely, a society loses its vitality."
## Key takeaway

Trump's effort to put his name on the Kennedy Center backfired, leading to the landmark's closure and criticism from prominent artists who see it as an attack on democracy itself.