President Donald Trump’s administration is hoping to keep hundreds of messages about the controversial Kennedy Center takeover a secret as a new federal court showdown over the president’s plan to shut down the landmark continues.
Attorneys for Rep. Joyce Beatty of Ohio have asked a judge to force the Trump administration to release all the communications, including texts and emails, to determine how involved Trump was in the decision to close the performing arts venue for renovations.
The administration argues that some messages are protected by executive privilege, according to The Daily Beast. However, Beatty’s attorneys argue that withholding the communications will leave the case incomplete.
“These communications directly bear on the issues before the Court, and the claim of privilege cannot stand,” Beatty’s attorneys wrote, also calling the move possible “gamesmanship.”
The court filing shows that there were 19 text messages exchanged between Kennedy Center CEO Matt Floca and Trump’s executive assistant Natalie Harp. Eleven messages were sent on September 15, the same day the center’s Trump-aligned board voted for a third time to shut down the facility.
The disputed records also include approximately 180 messages between the CEO and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, whom Beatty’s lawyers describe as Trump’s “go-between.”
The lawyers argue the communications could show whether Trump was making the decisions, including the planned two-year closure for renovations estimated to cost as much as $257 million.
Beatty’s legal team is also disputing the administration’s argument that Trump’s executive privilege wants U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper to force the disclosure.
Trump has already faced many legal setbacks in his efforts to rename and remodel the building.
In May, Cooper ruled that the president’s name had been illegally added to the Kennedy Center building and ordered its removal.
The board then approved the shutdown of the center again in September, with Floca announcing its temporary closure later that month. However, the judge ordered officials to provide 30 days’ notice before making any major changes to the building.
Trump previously told the press that the building could be demolished if he doesn’t make major changes. “Because frankly, if we don’t do that, it’s going to close; it will end up being ripped down.”
He also made an argument as to why he deserves to have his name on the building.
“For the Trump administration, for me, to get involved, and to take on long term, and to carry it, or to raise money to carry it, I think that the Trump administration should certainly have recognition,” Trump said in September.
For now, the center remains closed, and the judge is yet to rule on whether the Trump admin will be forced to release the messages.
