WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says he has fired a member of the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts councillor and named himself.
He also showed that he has declared programming decisions at one of the nation’s leading cultural institutions and will end events featuring drug performers in particular.
Trump’s announcement on Friday saw the Republican president bulldozer beyond Washington in the first week of his second term, shutting down federal agencies and ending government-wide diversity, equity and comprehensive initiatives. I was trying to do it.
Watch: On a newly expanded campus, Kennedy Center aims to make ART an AL experience
“In my direction, we’re making the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC great again. Trump writes on his social media website, Trump writes.
“We’ll be announcing a new board meeting soon. Great Chairman, Donald J. Trump!”
In a later statement on the website, the Kennedy Center said it was aware of Trump’s post. “We have not received any official communication from the White House regarding changes to the board,” the statement said. “We recognize that some members of our board have received notification of termination from the administration.”
The statement continued. “According to the governance of the Centre, established by the Parliament in 1958, the chair of the council was appointed by the Centre’s board members. The Centre’s law prevents the new administration from replacing board members. There is nothing, but this is the first time that such a measure has been taken at the Kennedy Center Board of Directors.”
Drug artists accused him of targeting Trump because he is in a country where freedom of expression is guaranteed by the constitution.
“This is about who exists in public places and what that story is told on the American stage,” said Blaq Dinamyte, president of Qomittee, a national network of drug artists and allies. “To prohibit the entire art form is censorship, simple and simple. Americans don’t have to agree to everything, but we speak our hearts and perform our art without bans, retaliation or threats. You should be able to do that.”
Unlike Democrats Joe Biden and other presidents for decades, Trump did not attend the annual Kennedy Center honors ceremony during his first term.
Shortly after Trump’s post, the Kennedy Center website began experiencing technical difficulties. Visitors received a message saying “We’re busy” and were redirected to a “waiting room” listing hundreds of people trying to access the previous site.
In his post, Trump suggested implementing some changes to the center’s performance schedule, noting last year that “Kennedy Center featured a drug show targeting our youth — this will stop.” .
According to its website, the center in July held a preshu titled “Drug Salute to the Diva” and a November “Drug Branch.”
Read more: Supreme Court refuses to intervene in disputes over drug shows at public universities in Texas
In his post, Trump did not make clear what board members would be closing, other than his current chairman, philanthropist David Rubenstein. The board often features political power brokers and key donors, and is now made up of members on both sides of the aisle.
Reubenstein was first elected to the Post in 2010 and was re-elected every year since then. He was originally appointed to the Kennedy Center board by Republican President George W. Bush, and was later reappointed by Barack Obama and Democratic President Biden.
The current board features Biden’s White House press secretary, Carine Jean Pierre, Biden’s longtime ally, Mike Donilon, and former Obama advisor Stephanie Cutter. The treasurer of the Center’s board of trustees is Television producer Shonda Rymes, who hosted Biden fundraisers last summer before waiving his re-elected bid.
However, the current committee has stated that Trump’s allies, including his recently confirmed Attorney General Pam Bondy, and Lee Green, whose song “God The USA” is the unofficial national anthem for Trump’s presidential election. It also features Trump’s allies, including Wood.
In his first term in 2019, Trump announced that he has longtime supporter actor John Voight tapped onto the board.
Associated Press Writer Darlene Superville from Palm Beach, Florida contributed to this report.
