Trump Blasts 'Highly Conflicted' Judge Over Kennedy Center

Lawyers for Rep. Joyce Beatty, an Ohio Democrat who sits on the Kennedy Center board ex officio, argued this week that the inscription plan is an end-run around the May ruling and a "breathtaking assault on the rule of law" — one meant to paper over the financial fallout from the president's takeover, which has brought a run of artist cancellations and, per a Washington Post report, a slowdown in ticket sales.

The administration says the building is genuinely falling apart. "The concept of, if the building is not properly renovated and restored, eventually it falls into a state of disrepair and it cannot be used," Lutnick said outside court Thursday. "It'll just run out of money … and over time it'll just go down and down and down, until at some point, a building that was built in 1964 that isn't renovated does eventually get torn down."

On the Mall, Trump was blunter. "Look what VANDALS did to the grass connecting the vandalized World War II Monument and the vandalized Reflecting Pool, which will be opened again, and better than ever, shortly," he wrote, adding: "Anybody who thinks the Reflecting Pool wasn't vandalized should go back to Law School!" He posted an image that appeared to show "86 47" in the lawn.