Adam Schiff says that if Trump can't put his name on the Kennedy Center, "he is willing to close it or destroy it"
U.S. Senator from California, in a quote-post on his official X account (@SenAdamSchiff)
“If the President can't put his name on it, he is willing to close it or destroy it. He cares more about branding our institutions than preserving them. Congress allocated $257 million to repair the Kennedy Center. It should insist that work be done properly.”
Source and context
Original post
About this source
Schiff's own post on the X account his Senate site lists, a quote-post of Aaron Rupar's post (status 2100422728440217733) of an AFP/Getty photograph by Brendan Smialowski; it is not a reply. Read on 2026-09-19 through api.fxtwitter.com and cross-checked against X's syndication endpoint (same text and timestamp, not edited). Not archived: Wayback blocks x.com.
Reporting
About this source
News report opened in full on 2026-09-19 (published 2026-09-17 18:28 UTC, modified 20:12 UTC). Used only for the context sentences: where Trump made his 2026-09-16 remark, the photograph and its partly obscured wording, and the court order. The outlet's own framing of the remark is not adopted.
Reporting
About this source
AP story republished by PBS News (article:published_time 2026-09-17T15:38:45-04:00), opened 2026-09-19. Used only to show the order had been reported by 3:38 PM ET, before this 5:32 PM ET post; the docket gives no clock time for the order.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Original text
About this source
Court docket as mirrored by CourtListener (RECAP), opened 2026-09-19. The minute order was read in full: it denies the emergency hearing (ECF 84), requires a sworn status report by 2026-09-23, orders written notice more than 30 days before any change to the scope of the project plans including any 'demolition' of the main building, and allows discovery on ECF 85. The docket gives dates but no clock times. ECF 88 is the defendants' motion to vacate or dissolve the 2026-05-29 preliminary injunction; ECF 89 is their motion for partial summary judgment.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Reporting
About this source
AP story (published 2026-09-18 22:12 UTC) read on the WSLS syndicated copy because apnews.com blocks automated fetches. Used only for the context sentence about Trump's Oval Office exchange; AP's wording 'as he's threatened to do' is not adopted. The exchange itself was not watched.
Official statement
About this source
Official Senate press release dated September 17, 2026 (page metadata 2026-09-18 02:31 UTC, i.e. 10:31 PM ET on 9/17), opened 2026-09-19. It describes a separate statement, Schiff's MS NOW interview, and is cited only for that context sentence; its description of Trump's position as 'threatening to tear down' the building is the office's wording and is not adopted.
Before the quotation
On the evening of 2026-09-16 President Trump told reporters in Charlotte, North Carolina, that the Trump administration should have recognition and spoke of the Kennedy Center closing and ending up 'ripped down'. The post Schiff quoted is journalist Aaron Rupar's post of AFP photographs from Trump's flight home that night, one showing him apparently looking at a placard bearing the words 'Kennedy Center DEMOLISHED', with the final letters obscured. On 2026-09-17, before this post, Judge Christopher Cooper issued a minute order that denied Rep. Joyce Beatty's request for an emergency hearing and required the defendants to give written notice more than 30 days before implementing any change to the scope of the project plans, including any 'demolition' of the main building.
After the quotation
Schiff's Senate office later published a press release, dated 2026-09-17, on his appearance on MS NOW's All In with Chris Hayes about the Kennedy Center. On 2026-09-18 the defendants moved to vacate or dissolve the court's May 29 preliminary injunction, and the Associated Press reported that Trump did not directly respond when asked in the Oval Office whether he planned to demolish the building.
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 2026-09-15 Truth Social post and reaffirmed in his 2026-09-16 remarks to reporters in Charlotte. Schiff's own words say that if the President cannot put his name on the building he is 'willing to close it or destroy it' and that he 'cares more about branding our institutions than preserving them', which criticizes making the building's fate depend on his name. The closest competing label is mixed_or_conditional, because the post ends by urging Congress to insist that the $257 million repair work be done properly. That loses because the urging is a remedy aimed at the conduct Schiff criticizes, not a materially different position on the recognition condition.
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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
“I don't mind doing the job, but if I do the job, I think the Trump administration, including Bobby, but the Trump administration should be recognized. Why should I raise and put up and do all of this work?”Read statement