President Trump was officially elected chairman of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, he announced on Wednesday, cementing his grip on an institution that he recently purged of Biden appointees.
Mr. Trump posted on social media: “It is a Great Honor to be Chairman of The Kennedy Center, especially with this amazing Board of Trustees. We will make The Kennedy Center a very special and exciting place!”
At the same time, the center’s longtime president, Deborah F. Rutter, announced to staff that she was stepping down, according to an official at the center. Mr. Trump recently named Richard Grenell, who was ambassador to Germany during the first Trump administration, the center’s “interim executive director.” Mr. Grenell visited the center of Wednesday, the official said.
The Kennedy Center did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Kennedy Center, which has historically been run by bipartisan boards in the past, posted a revised list of board members on its website on Wednesday that showed how much things had changed.
While the board had been roughly split between Biden and Trump appointees until recently, it is now entirely made up of appointees of Mr. Trump. The new board members include a litany of Trump loyalists, including the president’s chief of staff, Susie Wiles, and Usha Vance, the wife of Vice President JD Vance.
Ms. Rutter, the center’s president since 2014, said last month that she planned to step down at the end of the year.