Jeffries says Democrats will stop the president from "another vanity project" at the Kennedy Center
Hakeem JeffriesHouse Democratic Leader and U.S. Representative for New York's 8th congressional district, answering a reporter's question at a House Democratic leadership press conference in Washington
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries answers a reporter's question at a Democratic leadership news conference, Sept. 17, 2026.
Excerpt from 25:30 to 27:01 of the office's livestream. DI added its logo in the corner.
Video: Office of House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Public domain (U.S. government work) (opens in a new tab)
Watch the full original video (opens in a new tab) (relevant passage: 26:43-26:59 of the 29:10 livestream (the reporter's question runs about 25:32-26:04; Jeffries's answer runs 26:05-26:59))
At a House Democratic leadership press conference in Washington on September 17, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries was asked about a photograph of President Trump that the reporter said suggested the Kennedy Center could be demolished, and about what Congress could do if the administration moved forward. He said legislative action was needed through the appropriations process for action not authorized by Congress, and that he was confident that 'one way or the other' Democrats would 'stop the president from another vanity project and waste of taxpayer resources in the context of the Kennedy Center.'
“I'm confident that one way or the other, whether it's legislatively or whether it's legally in the courts, we're going to stop the president from another vanity project and waste of taxpayer resources in the context of the Kennedy Center.”
Original video
Original video
Reporting
Where this statement fits
Should Donald Trump link the Kennedy Center's renovation to recognition for his administration?
On September 15, 2026, a federal judge barred the Kennedy Center board, chaired by Donald Trump, from inscribing "renovated and restored by Donald J. Trump" on its main building or renaming the grounds for him. The board then voted to close the main building, and Trump posted that renovation "cannot begin until such time as the D.C. Circuit rules on the Board's approved name" and "will not take place" if that ruling is negative and not overturned. In Charlotte on September 16 he said the administration "should certainly have recognition. Because frankly, if we don't do that, it's going to close. It'll end up being ripped down." The White House says the center will "inevitably continue to decline" without his intervention; Rep. Joyce Beatty's lawyers wrote that Trump said "if he is not recognized on the building, it will close and be ripped down." The dispute is over whether the renovation should depend on recognition for Trump's administration and what his remarks mean.
Source and context
Original video
About this source
Full livestream of the House Democratic leadership press availability (Jeffries, Whip Katherine Clark, Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar) on the Rep. Jeffries YouTube channel, linked from the Democratic Leader's 2026-09-17 press release. YouTube shows the stream starting 14:36 UTC (10:36 AM ET) on 2026-09-17 and lists the upload date as 2026-09-18. The quotation was checked against the recording. The reporter is not identified on the recording, and Jeffries's press release does not cover this exchange.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Watch the clip from this source at the top of the page.
Original video
About this source
C-SPAN's excerpt of the same exchange, uploaded 2026-09-17 15:33 UTC. C-SPAN's event page (c-span.org/event/news-conference/house-democratic-leaders-hold-briefing-47-days-ahead-of-midterm-elections/447229) dates the full event 2026-09-17 and describes lawmakers leaving town early to campaign; the clip description quotes the same sentence. The quoted wording is our transcription of the audio.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Reporting
About this source
News report published 2026-09-17 18:28 UTC. Quotes the same clause from Jeffries and supplies the context on the photograph and the court order; used to corroborate and date the exchange, not as the basis of the quotation. Its description of Jeffries as having 'criticised the plans' is the reporter's characterization.
Before the quotation
The exchange came at a House Democratic leadership press conference as lawmakers left Washington early to campaign ahead of the midterm elections. A widely circulated photograph showed President Trump aboard Air Force One apparently looking at a placard bearing the words 'Kennedy Center DEMOLISHED' (the Guardian reported that the image does not establish that demolition was being planned), and Rep. Joyce Beatty, an ex officio member of the Kennedy Center board, had submitted it to the court and sought an emergency hearing.
After the quotation
The same day, U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper rejected Beatty's request for an emergency hearing but ordered the administration to give at least 30 days' notice before taking any steps toward demolition.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
Asked on September 17 about a photograph suggesting the center could be demolished, Jeffries called the president's Kennedy Center effort 'another vanity project and waste of taxpayer resources' and said Democrats would stop it legislatively or in the courts, which criticizes and opposes the course the conduct under scrutiny describes. The closest competing label is “Mixed or conditional”, because he frames stopping the project as depending on a legislative or judicial route ('one way or the other'). That loses because the condition concerns the means, not whether the project is acceptable, and his evaluation of it is uniformly critical.
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- Donald Trump
More from this case
Read the full caseSheldon Whitehouse says Trump appointees' conduct is hard to square with the board's fiduciary duty
“Not easy to see how any of this behavior of Trump appointees comports with the board’s fiduciary duty to the Center.”Read statement
Dechicchis criticizes putting recognition ahead of improvements
“In Trump’s mind, if he doesn’t get the recognition he feels he deserves, there’s no point in continuing improvements on the center.”Read statement
Kerry Kennedy says Congress already funded the Kennedy Center's restoration and tells Trump "That's not your job"
“this is the memorial created by the United States Congress to a slain president. So, putting Trump's name on it would be like renaming the Washington Monument the Trump Washington Monument or the Trump Lincoln Memorial or the Trump Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. ... And their argument is they're not -- there is not money for it. But in the Big Beautiful Bill, they -- the Congress passed $246 million in order to restore the Kennedy Center. So that's just not true. ... So President Trump, do your job. Focus on the people's pain and the work that you're supposed to do in the -- in the Oval Office and not on the Kennedy Center. That's not your job.”Read statement
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- Jeffries says Democrats will stop the president from "another vanity project" at the Kennedy Center
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The Dispute Index. "Jeffries says Democrats will stop the president from "another vanity project" at the Kennedy Center". First published: 2026-09-19. Last updated: 2026-09-22. https://disputeindex.com/events/1178-at-a-house-democratic-leadership-press-conference-in