Trump has floated replacing the center with an outdoor amphitheater
Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, on Monday blocked a bipartisan bill that would have barred any president from demolishing presidential memorials, including the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, according to United Press International. The legislation was offered by Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, who sought to pass it through a unanimous-consent request, a procedure that advances a bill unless a single senator objects.
Lee objected and framed the bill as a partisan distraction. “Democrats should join us in lowering the cost of living and securing American elections instead of wasting the Senate’s time with partisan scaremongering; they haven’t even tried to run through the appropriate committee process,” Lee told The Guardian.
Merkley and Murkowski lead the appropriations subcommittee that funds the Kennedy Center, the Interior Department and the National Park Service, putting them in position to advance legislation affecting the building.
The bill surfaced as fears mounted that President Donald Trump would move to demolish the cultural landmark. On Sept. 15, a federal judge ruled for a second time that Trump could not put his name on the center, and Trump and the board subsequently closed the building, UPI reported.
Kennedy Center Executive Director Matt Floca said the closure would last only a week. On Thursday, a federal judge ruled that any changes to the center must be announced to the court in writing 30 days in advance.
Since the ruling against the renaming, Trump has threatened to tear down the center, arguing that its disrepair has made it dangerous, according to UPI. Trump has also mentioned that he could replace the center with an outdoor amphitheater.
Earlier this month, a photograph taken through the window of Air Force One showed Trump holding a poster that appeared to read “Kennedy Center DEMOLISH.” The image circulated on social media.
Rep. Joyce Beatty has sued to prevent Trump from adding his name to the building or destroying it.
Norm Eisen, one of her lawyers, said the closure defied the court’s orders. “Closing the Kennedy Center without Judge Cooper’s approval appears to directly violate his order. This is an assault on the rule of law,” Eisen said.
“The board cannot simply ignore Judge Cooper’s rulings whenever it suits them. In this country, no one — including the president — is above the law,” Eisen added.
The Senate’s failure to advance the bill leaves the underlying dispute over the building’s fate in the courts, where Beatty’s lawsuit and the 30-day-notice order set the procedural ground rules for any further changes.