Last Friday evening I attended the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts with my wife and two friends to listen to a wonderful performance of Handel’s “Messiah.”
The Kennedy Center has been among the few places in Washington (sports arenas are another) where one can get through a day or evening without the confrontational and corrosive political language that has infected the city. Not anymore.
President Trump, with the approval of a board he appointed, has added his name to the building. Henceforth, or until a future president and board will remove it (one can only hope), the place will be labeled, if not called by everyone, the Trump Kennedy Center.
I recall the first performance in what has become Washington’s main cultural attraction. It was on Sept. 8, 1971, and the world premiere of Leonard Bernstein’s “Mass,” a work commissioned by Jacqueline Kennedy. The Kennedys did more to bring high-brow culture to Washington than any other president and first lady. President Trump has brought nothing, not even close, that can match their contributions.
During the day on Friday, workers were already drilling the additional name into the outside of the building. The Kennedy Center website has been re-labeled “Trump Kennedy Center.”
There is talk around town that Trump has only begun to add his name to other buildings. One prospect he is reportedly eyeing is the soon-to-be finished Washington Commanders (formerly “Redskins”) football stadium. I got to thinking about other places where Trump might affix his name.
Since the president has frequently suggested – as have some of his followers – that he is the greatest president ever, how about a new name for the city’s most famous obelisk: The Trump Washington Monument?
Then there are the memorials to Abraham Lincoln and Thomas Jefferson. Trump Lincoln and Trump Jefferson might appeal to him, although the first sounds like a car model and the second like a character in the late Norman Lear’s TV show “The Jeffersons.”
The FBI Building named after J. Edgar Hoover could be easily changed at little expense. The “J” just has to have “D” and “T” drilled into it. It would instantly become the “DJT Hoover Building.”
Then there is the Department of Justice building named after Robert F. Kennedy. Trump Kennedy sounds like a presidential ticket.
For the spiritually minded, Washington’s magnificent National Cathedral is a natural. While Trump doesn’t attend church, his “worshippers” might feel the spirit if it was called the Trump Cathedral.
Some are suggesting Dulles International Airport might be re-named for Trump. How many recall Dwight Eisenhower’s secretary of state? Nothing wrong with an “upgrade,” except as in so many of these it would be a downgrade.
Then there is the name of the city itself. Since Trump claims credit (and with some justification) for lowering incidents of crime, he might be honored by erasing the “C” which stands for Columbia and labeling the capital Washington, “DT.”
He’s already re-named the Institute of Peace, honoring himself for all the wars he says he has ended. It’s now called the Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace.
Why stop with these? The moon could be named after Trump. Moon is such a dull name. Then there are some of the planets. Trump Uranus might work, if that doesn’t sound redundant.
In 1964, the year after President Kennedy’s assassination, Congress passed legislation naming the building as a memorial to him. Some Democrats are saying Congress should approve any name change. They are right, but Trump presses on in what could result in a fait accompli.
Readers may email Cal Thomas at tcaeditors@tribpub.com. Look for Cal Thomas’ latest book “A Watchman in the Night: What I’ve Seen Over 50 Years Reporting on America” (HumanixBooks).
