Greg Werkheiser says Trump is legally obligated to raise Kennedy Center funds or step aside
Founding partner of Cultural Heritage Partners and attorney for the eight plaintiff organizations in D.C. Preservation League v. Board of Trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, speaking at a press briefing for reporters
“he is legally obligated—if he has the capacity to raise money and they need it, he must raise that money or step aside.”
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
News report of remarks Werkheiser made at a press briefing on 2026-09-17; the article is timestamped 3:03 PM ET that day. Opened the full article on 2026-09-19 and machine-matched the quotation against the page text (only quotation-mark and whitespace normalization). The quotation is the reporter's rendering of oral remarks and begins mid-sentence; no recording of the briefing was located, so the words are verified as printed, not against audio. The same paragraph attributes to him the characterization of the president's position on repairs and fundraising as a 'hostage-taking' situation.
Reporting
About this source
Corroborates that Werkheiser spoke to reporters on 2026-09-17 (published 11:24 AM ET, updated 12:05 PM EDT) and reports a related remark from the same briefing, describing Trump's power over the center's rescue as a responsibility rather than leverage to demand that the institution honor him. It also says the plaintiffs' written statement was provided by Werkheiser. The canonical URL returns a bot-wall 403 to automated fetches; the text was read from the AMP version of the same article (same URL plus /amp/) on 2026-09-19. Not the basis of the quotation.
Reporting
About this source
Opened the version updated 2026-09-17 6:49 PM UTC. Cited only for the same-day court order (sworn status report due September 23; written notice before demolition or change of scope) and Werkheiser's emailed reaction to it. The page text was readable by direct fetch despite the paywall.
Before the quotation
On September 15, Judge Christopher Cooper again ruled that the Kennedy Center board cannot place Trump's name on the building or grounds without congressional authorization; Werkheiser said Trump responded that the renovations will not proceed unless that ruling is overturned, according to The Hill. On September 17, the eight plaintiff organizations issued a written statement asking the court to consider appointing a receiver or replacing the center's leadership if it is unwilling or unable to protect the building.
After the quotation
The Hill reported that Werkheiser told reporters the plaintiffs will likely soon file for a receivership. The same day, Judge Cooper ordered the Kennedy Center to file a sworn status report on the closure by September 23 and to give challengers written notice before any demolition or change in the scope of planned renovations; Bloomberg Law reported that Werkheiser described the order in an email as a significant win for the public.
How this statement is classified
Case context: Donald Trump's statements linking the Kennedy Center's renovation to recognition for his administration
The label describes this statement’s response within the context above.
Why this label?
The case's fixed reference point is President Trump's stated position that the Kennedy Center's closure and renovation depend on recognition for his administration, as expressed in his Truth Social post of 2026-09-15 and reaffirmed in his remarks in Charlotte on 2026-09-16. Speaking as the plaintiffs' counsel two days later, Werkheiser said Trump is legally obligated to raise the money the center needs or step aside, and ARTnews reported that he characterized the position as a "hostage-taking" situation, which expressly rejects tying the work to recognition. The closest competing label is mixed_or_conditional, because the quoted sentence contains an "if he has the capacity" clause. That loses because the clause defines the scope of the duty he asserts and does not make his rejection of the condition depend on anything unresolved.
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- People and groups discussed
- Donald Trump
Donald Trump's statements linking the Kennedy Center's renovation to recognition for his administration
Explore the case context, sources and public responses.
More from this case
Read the full case“I keep wondering how insecure, how narcissistic, how egomaniacal you have to be to say you'll demolish a building if they don't put your name on it.”Read statement
“Donald Trump has spent countless hours on ridiculous vanity projects instead of trying to tackle the sky-high cost of living or ending his failed war in Iran, and now he's threatening to tear down the Kennedy Center just because he can't slap his name on it. It's sad, shallow, and a disgrace to the institution which by law honors our 35th president. We will continue fighting this obsession and defend this national cultural center in Congress and the courts”Read statement
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