Rep. Joyce Beatty, who opposed Trump’s Kennedy Center rename, says she was muted during board vote

Rep. Joyce Beatty is speaking out after White House claims the vote to rename the John F. Kennedy Center after President Trump was unanimous.

Rep. Joyce Beatty is pushing back hard on claims that the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. was “unanimously” renamed after President Donald Trump.

On Thursday, Dec. 18, after White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced that the famed arts institution had been renamed following a “unanimous” vote by the Trump-leaning board installed shortly after the president took office, the 75-year-old Ohio congresswoman said that characterization simply isn’t true.

“I’m sitting here in my congressional office in Washington, D.C., just ending a call with the Kennedy Center, where I serve as an ex officio member,” Beatty said in a video posted to X. “I am bringing this to you live today because what you may hear is that there was a unanimous vote to rename the Kennedy Center, the Trump Center.”

“Be clear: I was on that call,” she continued. “As I tried to push my button to voice my concern, to ask questions, and certainly not to vote in support of this, I was muted. Each time I tried to speak, I was muted. Participants who were online were not allowed to voice their concerns, yet it was said at the end that it was a unanimous vote.”

Beatty also underscored that the decision exceeds the board’s authority. “Clearly Congress has a say in this,” she said. “The Kennedy Center was created by Congress. This is just another attempt to evade the law and not let the people have a say.”

In the caption accompanying her post, she added bluntly: “For the record, this was not on the agenda. This was not consensus. This is censorship.”

The controversy follows Trump’s aggressive reshaping of the Kennedy Center soon after taking office, when he purged appointed board members and replaced them with loyalists. The reconstituted board later named Trump chairman of the storied arts organization, which was dedicated in 1964 as a “living memorial” to President John F. Kennedy.

“I want to make sure it runs properly,” Trump said at the time. “We don’t need woke at the Kennedy Center… some of the shows were terrible. They were a disgrace.”

Since then, the takeover has sparked sustained backlash, with several artists, including Issa Rae, Rhiannon Giddens, and the producers of “Hamilton,” canceling high-profile programming. Trump also broke with tradition by becoming the first sitting president to host the Kennedy Center Honors, a move that drew mixed reactions. He previously hinted at a potential name change while teasing this year’s nominees, writing online, “GREAT Nominees for the TRUMP/KENNEDY CENTER, whoops, I mean, KENNEDY CENTER, AWARDS.”

The latest announcement has ignited fresh outrage, including from House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who questioned what the move says about the administration’s priorities.

“Are you kidding me?”Jeffries said during a press conference on Thursday, in a clip circulating. “How does that help deal with the affordability crisis in this country?”

“These people are pathetic. They are sycophants,” he added. “They’re bending the knee to a loser.”

Jeffries also emphasized a key legal reality: the renaming effort lacks teeth. “They don’t have the power to do it,” he stressed. “Only Congress can rename the Kennedy Center.”

“The wannabe king and his sycophantic minions can’t do it,” Jeffries said, “but they’re going to create a spectacle. And none of this helps the American people who already believe Donald Trump is not focused on making their lives better.”