Eight plaintiff groups incl. the American Institute of Architects say Trump's renovation stance ‘turns fiduciary responsibility on its head’
American Institute of ArchitectsOne of eight plaintiff organizations in DC Preservation League v. Board of Trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (1:26-cv-00981), in a joint press statement issued with the other seven
In a joint statement of eight plaintiff organizations in a separate lawsuit over the Kennedy Center (the American Institute of Architects, American Society of Landscape Architects, Committee of 100 on the Federal City, The Cultural Landscape Foundation, D.C. Preservation League, Docomomo US, National Trust for Historic Preservation and Society of Architectural Historians), the groups described Trump’s response to the naming ruling, that renovations "will not proceed unless that ruling is overturned," as something that "turns fiduciary responsibility on its head." The statement says that if Trump has the ability his fellow trustees attribute to him to save the Center, that gives him a responsibility to use it and not "leverage to demand that the institution honor him." The record is attributed to the American Institute of Architects, which published the statement on its own site.
“President Trump responded that the renovations will not proceed unless that ruling is overturned. This turns fiduciary responsibility on its head. If President Trump has the extraordinary ability his fellow trustees say he has to save the Kennedy Center, that gives him the extraordinary responsibility to use it—not extraordinary leverage to demand that the institution honor him.”
Official statement
Official statement
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
Official statement
About this source
AIA newsroom press release dated September 17, 2026 (dateline "WASHINGTON –September 17, 2026 – Statement of eight Plaintiff organizations"). The same text is on the ASLA, DC Preservation League and Cultural Heritage Partners pages.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Official statement
About this source
ASLA's own press-release page (created 2026-09-17) reproducing the full "Statement of eight Plaintiff organizations" naming all eight issuers; media contact is counsel Greg Werkheiser of Cultural Heritage Partners. The quotation appears word for word in the page text. The page has a typo in an unquoted paragraph ("leadzrship") that the other copies do not.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Reporting
About this source
NPR reports that the eight plaintiff organizations, among them AIA and the National Trust for Historic Preservation, sent a joint statement to NPR on Thursday, September 17, 2026. NPR quotes two passages of the statement with an ellipsis between them; the quotation in this entry comes from the full release published by AIA. The title contains the outlet's own verb ("threatens").
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
On September 15, Judge Christopher Cooper ruled that the Kennedy Center board could not put Trump’s name on the building or grounds without congressional authorization, and the board voted to close the building. Trump then posted on Truth Social that the closing would take place immediately and that the renovation and reconstruction "will not take place" if the ruling on the board’s approved name is negative and is not overturned.
After the quotation
NPR quoted the joint statement in its September 17 report on the dispute.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The joint statement describes Trump’s response to the naming ruling (that renovations will not proceed unless the ruling is overturned) as something that "turns fiduciary responsibility on its head" and as "leverage to demand that the institution honor him," which criticizes tying the renovation to recognition. The closest competing label is “Mixed or conditional”, because other parts of the release are framed as conditions ("If the current leadership will neither fulfill its fiduciary obligations nor step aside"). That loses because those conditions attach to the judicial remedy the plaintiffs describe, not to their evaluation of the tie between renovation and recognition, which is stated without qualification.
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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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- Eight plaintiff groups incl. the American Institute of Architects say Trump's renovation stance ‘turns fiduciary responsibility on its head’
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The Dispute Index. "Eight plaintiff groups incl. the American Institute of Architects say Trump's renovation stance ‘turns fiduciary responsibility on its head’". First published: 2026-09-19. Last updated: 2026-09-22. https://disputeindex.com/events/1192-in-a-joint-statement-of-eight-plaintiff-organizations