Barbra Streisand calls the Kennedy Center dispute a ‘bitter struggle over one man’s name and unchecked ego’
Barbra StreisandSinger and actor and 2008 Kennedy Center honoree, in a statement on her official website
In a statement posted on her official website, singer and 2008 Kennedy Center honoree Barbra Streisand said there was "no discussion of closing" the Kennedy Center while Trump’s name was on the building, and expressed indignation at seeing the institution become "the subject of such a bitter struggle over one man’s name and unchecked ego." The statement addresses the fight over Trump’s name and the announced closure in general terms.
“And now, a thoroughly defeated Trump has announced that the Kennedy Center is being closed for what the completely stacked board describes as a major renovation. Oddly, when Trump’s name was still on the building, there was no discussion of closing it! You can easily imagine my indignation at seeing this revered institution become the subject of such a bitter struggle over one man’s name and unchecked ego.”
Original text
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 text
About this source
Streisand's own statement on her official website (site description "The Official Barbra Streisand Site"), News/Statements section. The page gives a publication time of 2026-09-17T18:11:12+00:00 (2:11 PM ET) and a modification time of 18:17:28+00:00; Variety and The Hollywood Reporter both report it was posted Thursday on her official website. The Associated Press version carries the same wording in shorter form.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
Streisand's statement was posted on her official website on September 17, 2026.
After the quotation
The statement appears on the singer's official website under the title 'Barbra's remarks about the Kennedy Center'.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
Streisand expresses criticism of the closure as bound up with the naming fight: she says there was no discussion of closing the building while Trump’s name was on it and voices indignation at the institution becoming the subject of a struggle over "one man’s name and unchecked ego," though she does not mention the post or the September 16 remarks. The closest competing label is “Challenged the characterization”, because she also disputes the board’s description of the closure as a "major renovation". That loses because the passage goes on to express a clear condemnation of the name-driven fight rather than only disputing a description.
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“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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The Dispute Index. "Barbra Streisand calls the Kennedy Center dispute a ‘bitter struggle over one man’s name and unchecked ego’". First published: 2026-09-19. Last updated: 2026-09-22. https://disputeindex.com/events/1191-in-a-statement-posted-on-her-official-website