They are the ominous photos that could spell the end of the Kennedy Center, one of America’s most beloved arts venues.
Donald Trump was pictured on Wednesday looking at images of a poster that appeared to say “Kennedy Center DEMOLIS[HED] while sitting in Air Force One. The words, in bright red letters, were atop an image which looked like an aerial view of the building in Washington, DC, which was opened in 1971 as a tribute to the late President John F. Kennedy.
On Thursday, the White House did not answer questions about the photo, but said in a statement: “For years, Democrats let the Kennedy Center rot. … As President Trump said last night, without his intervention, The Kennedy Center will inevitably continue to decline.”
EU announces plan to restrict social media access for under-15s
The EU has announced plans to restrict social media access for under-15s across its member states, in a bid to tackle online safety.
How would it work?
There would be a gradual approach to children using social media which would include banning access for under 13s.
13 to 15-year-olds would be able to access platforms for an hour a day via “mini accounts” set up through their parent’s account.
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A closer look at the detail
The European Commission said social media companies would need to prove platforms were safe by design or face fines of up to 6 per cent of their global sales.
The restrictions would not just affect well-known apps such as TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat but also YouTube and other video sharing platforms as well as AI chatbots and online games.
What did the EU chief say?
Too many children are being exposed too early to an online world they are not ready to navigate – an environment where bullying can follow you home, where every mistake can be recorded forever.
Ursula von der Leyen
The crocodile-ridden river chosen as Olympic rowing venue
A river inhabited by around 500 saltwater crocodiles has been greenlit as the venue for Olympic and Paralympic rowing and canoeing events at the 2032 Brisbane Games.
Seal of approval
The location approved to host the events is on the Fitzroy River in Rockhampton, Queensland.
The independent technical assessment of the waters’ suitability did not take into account the crocodiles but examined how the course would perform under various circumstances and weather conditions.
How safe is the river?
- Olympic officials have previously been assured of the safety of the location, but British representatives are among those to raise concerns.
- The river is already a training and competition venue for flatwater sports, supporting school state championships and national team training camps, the report said.
- Contingency plans are in place and the route has been endorsed by World Rowing and Paddle Worldwide.
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Concerns downplayed
There are sharks in the ocean and we’re still surfing… it’s a can do, not a can’t do – please change the mindset here.
Speaking last year, Brisbane 2032 president Andrew Liveris dismissed concerns about crocodiles.
Nine countries can shelve EES checks for the rest of the year
At least nine European countries have been allowed to delay the full roll-out of controversial border biometric checks until the end of the year, The i Paper’s Joe Palmer and Joe Duggan can reveal.
Brussels has given extensions to several member states after a deadline for full implementation of the Entry/Exit System (EES) for non-EU nationals at Schengen area airports passed earlier this month.
Which countries are they?
At least nine European countries have been allowed to waive the full introduction of EES until the technology required for the necessary facial and fingerprint scans is working effectively.
Countries granted the exemption include:
What is EES?
EES, which launched last October, is replacing manual passport stamping, but has led to queues as long as seven hours at border checkpoints. Some passengers have been forced to miss their flights.
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A closer look at the EES crisis
When asked about the nine countries yet to fully introduce the checks, a spokesperson for the European Commission told The i Paper it was in “close and constructive contact with those few member states where some adjustments are still needed at certain border crossing points”.
Why would Trump want to destroy a site that for decades has not only honoured Kennedy and his legacy, but also given a platform to thousands of artists, musicians and performers? Because he can’t put his name on it.
In a fit of pique that would make a toddler stop and stare, Trump is apparently unwilling to salvage the building because he cannot brand his name on it.
“I think that the Trump administration should certainly have recognition,” Trump told reporters in North Carolina on Wednesday evening. “Because frankly, if we don’t do that, it’s going to close. It’ll end up being ripped down. It’s in very, very bad shape, very dangerous shape. I’d like to be able to save it, but it’s going to take a lot of subsidy into the future…”
The building is in dire need of renovation and Congress has allocated $257m to restore it. Yet Trump won’t release the money unless his name appears on the venue. It shows in total clarity how Trump is putting his petty, personal grievances ahead of any sense of a greater good.
The loss of the Kennedy Center would be devastating to not just Washington but to the US and to artists worldwide. The building was envisioned by President Dwight Eisenhower in 1955, before JFK himself took over the fundraising efforts until his assassination in 1963, after which it was recast as a tribute to him and the arts. It has several stages, welcomes two million visitors a year, and more than 260 performing artists have been awarded the annual Kennedy Center Honors, including dozens of A-list stars.
Its British equivalent would be something like the National Theatre, the Barbican Centre and the Royal Opera House rolled into one.
All that was lost on Trump when he began his second term last year and made slapping his name on the building one of his pet projects. He essentially mounted a crusade against the centre, stacking its board with loyalists.
Last December, the board voted to rename the venue the Trump-Kennedy Center – in recognition of the role he played in getting $257m Congress awarded to the site for the renovation.
To be clear, the Kennedy Center urgently needed the money and videos circulating on social media showed pieces of the ceiling collapsing. But the prospect of a new name for the site drew an angry response from the Kennedy family, including Kerry Kennedy, daughter of JFK’s brother, Robert F Kennedy, who was assassinated in 1968.
She said: “President Kennedy proudly stood for justice, peace, equality, dignity, diversity, and compassion for those who suffer. President Trump stands in opposition to these values, and his name should not be placed alongside President Kennedy’s”.
The matter ended up in court after a lawsuit from Congresswoman Joyce Beatty (D-OH), and in May, a judge ruled the renaming was illegal. In fact, it could only be decided by Congress, which authorised the creation of the Kennedy Center and its name, said Judge Christopher Cooper.
The “Trump” letters were removed, but rather than show off the bare wall, the Kennedy Center obscured the view with scaffolding and tarps, which are still in place. In August, the venue’s board vowed to put Trump’s name on the building in a new text: “Restored and Renovated by President Donald J. Trump”.
But Cooper ruled that was “linguistic semantics” and blocked the move alongside the another proposed option, “President Donald J. Trump Plaza”.
The impasse led to more anger from the Kennedy family, with Kerry Kennedy telling CNN that it was “public corruption” and that Trump was taking the centre “hostage”. Maria Shriver, another of Robert F. Kennedy’s nieces, called Trump “small minded”.
“It seems that this man will not rest until his name is permanently connected to the name of a great president, whose memory this building was dedicated to,” she said on social media.
The fate of the Kennedy Center now hangs in the balance, and an internal report has revealed that it could close within days and go into bankruptcy. In perhaps the most ironic twist of all, the centre is facing $22m in debt after ticket sales cratered in the past 12 months.
With House Republicans having left already for an extended break – they will not be back before the midterms in November – there seems little chance that Congress will come to the Kennedy Center’s rescue.
With a breathtaking level of spite, Trump apparently wants to knock the whole thing down – just because he didn’t get his way.
Key context
- Lawyers working to keep the Kennedy Center open and Trump’s name off its façade submitted new evidence on Thursday, citing Trump’s comments about tearing it down and the photo that appeared to hint at its possible demolition.
- An emergency hearing on the lawsuit is expected after the performing arts centre’s board, including Trump and his appointees, voted this week to close the venue for up to two years for a $257m renovation project.
- New barriers were visible outside the building on Wednesday. The board said on Thursday that this was not in violation of a court order limiting its ability to shut, and that a Kennedy Center official had closed the building on Wednesday for a week of emergency repairs.