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Trump formally asserts executive privilege in legal fight over Kennedy Center's closure
CBS News • • nation
Key Points:
- President Trump has formally invoked executive privilege to withhold records from Rep. Joyce Beatty related to his role in temporarily closing the Kennedy Center for renovations, citing presidential communications privilege.
- The White House argues that Trump’s oversight of the Kennedy Center as its board chairman requires confidentiality to ensure advisors can provide candid recommendations without fear of disclosure.
- Justice Department lawyers accuse Beatty of conducting a "fishing expedition" that raises separation-of-powers issues, while Beatty’s legal team contends the privilege claim is an unprecedented blanket assertion.
- The dispute arises from Beatty’s lawsuit challenging the Kennedy Center board’s decision to rename the institution after Trump and close it for two years, with a federal judge previously blocking the closure and ordering removal of Trump’s name.
- This case raises novel questions about whether executive privilege extends to a sitting president’s actions as chairman of a federally chartered performing arts institution partially funded by the government.
