Trashing the Capital: The Kennedy Center and the Washington Post
The moment of tenderness went largely unnoticed, as Bill and Hillary Clinton were dancing on stage at the Kennedy Center at their first inaugural ball. San Francisco venture capitalist Richard Blum was tickling the neck of his wife, newly elected Senator Dianne Feinstein of California, victorious in the 1992 Democratic wave. “Di-Fi” had a look of supreme pleasure at her surroundings.
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts was my Washington, D.C., neighbor for four years, while I was reporting on national politics for The Seattle Post-Intelligencer. It hosted gorgeous National Symphony performances under the baton of renowned cellist Mstislav Rostropovich, as well as avant-garde stuff.
The K Center, a national treasure, is now being trashed by a wannabe dictator with bad taste. Donald Trump has installed himself as its board president, installed toadies on the board, crimped creativity by driving off star performers and audiences, and put his name atop JFK’s. Attendance has crashed and now Trump is closing the Center for two years, ostensibly to “rebuild” it. The Orchestra and Washington Opera were already seeking new venues.
Trump consulted no one in making these moves. Not representatives of the American people who own the Center, nor the family of the assassinated President Kennedy for whom it is named. Such is the behavior of an authoritarian. Trump has also literally trashed the East Wing of the people’s house so as to install a gaudy ballroom to accommodate oligarch pals.
https://www.postalley.org/2026/02/08/trashing-the-capital-the-kennedy-center-and-the-washington-post/
= new reply since forum marked as read
