Lee Zeldin on rising gas prices, energy dominance and AI data centers

Kennedy Center board to appeal judge's order to remove Trump's name

The Kennedy Center plans to appeal a judge's order requiring President Trump's name to be removed from the performing arts center, according to multiple reports.Why it matters: An appeal could extend the controversy over Trump's name and the future of the famed center.Driving the news: The board of trustees appointed by Trump voted to pursue the appeal ahead of U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper's Friday deadline to remove the signage from the building in Washington, D.C., CNN first reported.Cooper sided with a lawsuit brought by Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio), an ex officio member of the Kennedy Center Board of Trustees, ruling ruling last month that the board had "overstepped its statutory bounds by unilaterally renaming the Kennedy Center after President Trump."State of play: The center had indicated it would adhere to the ruling, this week removing Trump's name from its website and social media accounts.Spokesperson Roma Daravi told the Washington Post: "We are complying with the court's order while evaluating all legal options to preserve this revitalization and recognize President Trump's leadership."Representatives for the Kennedy Center did not immediately respond to Axios' request for comment.Editor's note: This story has been updated with additional details throughout.

The Kennedy Center Is a Metaphor for De-Trumpification

You can remove Trump’s name but not the damage he’s done.

WATCH LIVE: Crews begin work to take Trump’s name off Kennedy Center

Crews have put up scaffolding ahead of the Friday deadline to take President Donald Trump’s name off the Kennedy Center. WHO IS MORE DESPERATE FOR A DEAL: TRUMP OR IRAN? A federal judge ordered last month that his name must come off the building, and renovation plans that would’ve closed the center for two years […]

Kennedy Center sued by National Opera over $17M of withheld funds

The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts is facing another catastrophic financial blow after the Washington National Opera filed a $17 million lawsuit against the troubled institution for refusing to release funds the company claims belong to them.According to New York Times reporting, the suit filed Thursday accuses Kennedy Center officials of withholding "endowment funds, donor gifts, and other contributions" collected for the opera's benefit since the company struck out on its own earlier this year."W.N.O. reluctantly files this case to preserve its future and to protect its donors and artists," lawyers for the opera said in court papers, identifying the funds as donor gifts received over years that are "critical" to its operations.The opera's attempt at negotiation went nowhere, it said. "For months, W.N.O. repeatedly tried to address these issues with the Kennedy Center, including through written requests, requests for meetings, and meetings with Kennedy Center leadership. Those efforts were met with indifference," the suit states.According to the Times, the opera's departure in January marked a dramatic rupture with an institution where the company had performed since 1971. Kennedy Center officials claimed at the time they decided to part ways "due to a financially challenging relationship"— but the lawsuit suggests a more sinister financial maneuver.The timing is damning, according to the Times' Julia Jacobs. The day before the separation announcement, Kennedy Center CFO Donna Arduin allegedly told opera leaders in an email that money in a fund containing bequests and contributions designated for the opera was being used as collateral for a line of credit for the center itself.Arduin asserted the funds belonged to the Kennedy Center. The opera company contends they were expressly reserved for its benefit. The suit does not specify how much money was used as collateral.The Kennedy Center's institutional collapse accelerated after President Trump assumed the chairmanship at the start of his second term and installed his allies as leadership. The move triggered an exodus of audiences, artists, and donors.The report noted that the opera's lawsuit comes amid broader institutional chaos at the Kennedy Center. A federal judge recently ordered Donald Trump's name removed from the center and temporarily blocked his plan to close the institution for two years of renovations. Trump and Kennedy Center lawyers appealed the decision Thursday.

Elon Musk Reflects on SpaceX’s Wild Rise as His Company Goes Public

Cornyn spars with Lee over SAVE Act: ‘You don’t have the votes’

A Republican intraparty clash broke out on social media between Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX) and Mike Lee (R-UT) over the SAVE Act, with Cornyn arguing the bill lacks the votes to advance and warning that GOP infighting is damaging the party’s political prospects. Cornyn, who is serving his final months in the Senate after losing […]

The military needs religious freedom in the AI age

American values require that human beings, not artificial intelligence, make the life-or-death decisions inherent to war. So announced Vice President JD Vance to graduating officers at the Air Force Academy recently. He’s right. What “makes you as warfighters unique is that we wage war justly,” Vance said. This means that “if the warfare of the […]

Data analyst reveals how Trump lost young Republicans on foreign policy

President Donald Trump is not only underwater with Democrats and Independents, but now he's losing young Republicans. CNN data analyst Harry Enten revealed that when it comes to the Iran war and foreign policy in general, Trump has lost his own base. "Trump [has a] historically strong performance with younger voters. And here we're talking about voters under the age of 45. He beat Kamala Harris with them, or at least beat the prior Republican baselines with them," said Enten. "And you can see it right here on foreign policy. He absolutely crushed Kamala Harris, who was more trusted under the age of 45, on foreign policy."Trump had a nine-point lead over Harris on foreign policy, but that has shifted significantly. "He has a net approval rating now on foreign policy — 40 points underwater, a nearly 50-point switcheroo," Enten said. "So, after putting in the strongest performance, more trusted on foreign policy, the first since George W. Bush all the way back in '04, [Trump] has completely lost that advantage way down there. He is no longer groovy. According to the young people of America," Enten said. Those foreign policy numbers are coming from Trump's failure in the Iran war. "Just take a look at how people under the age of 45 feel about Iran not being worth the cost," said Enten. "Look at this: four in five —81 percent said the Iran war is not worth the cost. And look at Trump's disapproval. Basically simpatico with this, 77 percent of those under the age of 45 say the Iran war, or, excuse me, say that Trump's disapproval of the Iran war is way up there, up there like a rocket at 77 percent."The generations make it clear that it isn't worth the cost. The older end of those under 45 are members of the Millennial Generation, who faced the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Brown University's Costs of War Project showed that the casualty and injury rate for the 19 years of war come overwhelmingly from the Millennial Generation. The Harvard Institute of Politics showed that "young adults [18 to 29] are overwhelmingly skeptical about the current U.S. strategy in Iran."