Topline

The Kennedy Center, still embroiled in a legal battle to add back President Donald Trump’s name, was ordered by a judge Tuesday to pay more than $250,000 to a jazz musician it sued for backing out of a planned concert in protest of the addition of Trump’s name to the center’s branding.

Key Facts

The Kennedy Center owes $252,479.70 in attorney’s fees to Chuck Redd, a jazz musician who canceled a Christmas Eve performance after the Kennedy Center board voted to add Trump’s name to the building, D.C. Superior Court judge Tanya M. Jones Bosier ruled Tuesday.

Bosier previously dismissed the Kennedy Center’s lawsuit against the musician, which accused Redd of breach of contract, in June, saying the arts center failed to prove Redd had signed a contract to perform.

Redd was scheduled to host the center’s annual “Jazz Jam” event, but later became one of a series of artists to cancel Kennedy Center gigs in protest.

The Kennedy Center’s then-president, Richard Grenell, vowed to sue Redd for $1 million in damages, calling his decision to pull out of the gig a “political stunt.”

Lisa J. Banks, a lawyer representing Redd, said when the suit was dismissed in June that the lawsuit was “political retribution, pure and simple,” saying Redd was sued “because he publicly and rightly objected to adding Donald Trump’s name to the Kennedy Center, a living memorial to former President John F. Kennedy.”

tangent

The Kennedy Center is still fighting a separate legal battle over its decision to add Trump’s name to the performing arts venue, which a judge ruled in May was illegal because the center did not seek congressional approval. U.S. District Judge Christopher R. Cooper ruled the center’s founding law designates naming abilities to Congress, also saying the law “makes crystal clear that the Center is to be named for President Kennedy.” The Kennedy Center appealed Cooper’s decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. The center has argued in court filings it stands to lose “hundreds of millions” of dollars in donations without Trump’s name, claiming some donors only gave money because the president’s name was attached.

Are The Tarps Still Standing At The Kennedy Center?

Yes. Tarps have stood in front of the Kennedy Center’s facade for nearly two months, blocking the venue’s sign. Though Trump’s name was removed in June to comply with a court deadline, onlookers still haven’t been able to see the proof for themselves. Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, who filed the original lawsuit challenging the Kennedy Center’s addition of Trump’s name, accused the center of keeping the tarps up to “massage broken egos” in court filings. Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., accused the Kennedy Center of a “literal coverup” by keeping up the tarps, likening the addition of Trump’s name to vandalism. The Kennedy Center has said the tarps are still up while workers repair the marble facade, though it has not given any indication as to when they might come down.

what to watch for

The Kennedy Center faces a looming deadline later this month—either by Aug. 20 or within five days of an upcoming Kennedy Center board meeting, whichever comes first—to submit a report to the court explaining its plans for future construction and operations, as well as the status of the tarps and scaffolding that remain standing.

further reading

Kennedy Center Given More Time To Explain Why Tarps Remain (Forbes)