A federal judge hit pause on President Trump’s plans to close the Kennedy Center for two years of renovations, and ordered the center to remove Mr. Trump’s name, too.
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Judge Christopher Cooper, an Obama appointee to the court in Washington, said Congress created the center and gave it the name in honor of the assassinated president, and only Congress can rename it. He threw out the name change approved last year by a board Mr. Trump hand-picked.
And Judge Cooper said plans to close the center in July for renovations must be put on hold because the board botched its decision-making. He said that doesn’t mean the board can’t take a do-over if it follows the right procedures.
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He also said “sorely needed” repair work will go forward.
“By way of this opinion, the court does not purport to dictate how the center should be run, nor does it prescribe any particular plan for the institution — construction, closure, or otherwise — moving forward. It simply holds the Kennedy Center Board to certain minimum requirements imposed by law,” he wrote.
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