Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said Friday he will introduce legislation barring sitting presidents from naming federal buildings after themselves, following Thursday’s renaming of the Kennedy Center.
“What arrogance,” Sanders wrote on the social platform X, referring to President Trump. “What narcissism. I will be introducing legislation prohibiting the naming of federal buildings after sitting presidents.”
Sanders shared a Reuters video showing the Kennedy Center Board unanimously voting to rename the venue the Donald J. Trump and John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts. Updated signage appeared on Friday, with The Washington Post reporting large “Trump” lettering spotted outside the building.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) said the renaming was illegal and required congressional approval, a claim disputed by the Kennedy Center’s interim president, Richard Grenell, in a post on X.
“The decision of the Trump Kennedy Center Board doesn’t impact the Memorial to Kennedy set up by Congress,” Grenell wrote early Friday.
Members of the Kennedy family condemned the renaming decision. Kerry Kennedy, daughter of former Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, said President Kennedy “proudly stood for justice, peace, equality, dignity, diversity, and compassion for those who suffer.”
“President Trump stands in opposition to these values, and his name should not be placed alongside President Kennedy’s,” she continued.
Former Rep. Joe Kennedy III (D-Mass.), a grandson of Robert F. Kennedy, said the center is “a living memorial to a fallen president” and was named for President Kennedy by federal law. Maria Shriver, daughter of Eunice Kennedy Shriver, criticized the move as “TDS in full display,” using the term “Trump Derangement Syndrome,” which Trump often applies to dismiss his critics.
Trump praised the board for its vote by referring to them as “the most distinguished people in the country.”
“We saved the building because it was in such bad shape, physically, financially, and in every other way, and now it’s very solid, very strong,” the president told reporters.
BACKLASH: Kennedy family, others slam move to rename Kennedy Center
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