Multiple performers have announced their resignations from the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts following President Donald Trump’s takeover of the center’s board.
As The Hill reports, President Trump first announced last week via his Truth Social account that he would be naming himself chairman of the Kennedy Center’s board of trustees, while also removing multiple board members. The newly-restructured board voted on Wednesday to elect Trump as chairman.
In response, Ben Folds announced his resignation as an “artistic adviser” for the National Symphony Orchestra due to “developments at the Kennedy Center.”
“It’s been a wonderful 8 years,” Folds wrote in an Instagram post. He claimed that his work at the Kennedy Center allowed “thousands of fresh new audiences to appreciate symphonic music.”
Others who quit from the Kennedy Center include singer and actor Renee Fleming and television writer Shonda Rhimes. Fleming issued a statement praising David Rubenstein, the former chairman who was replaced by Trump, while Rhimes released a very short statement simply declaring that “as of today, Shonda Rhimes has resigned from the board of the Kennedy Center.”
In addition to serving as chairman, President Trump also announced that Ric Grenell, former Ambassador to Germany and former Acting Director of National Intelligence, would serve as the interim President of the Kennedy Center. Among the new board members selected by the president are country singer Lee Greenwood, Second Lady Usha Vance, Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, and senior adviser Dan Scavino.
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