Trump Names Kennedy Center Honorees and Says He Will Host Ceremony

President Trump affirmed his growing influence over the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington on Wednesday morning by announcing the new class of Kennedy Center honorees and revealing that he would host this year’s ceremony personally.

Mr. Trump has taken a strong interest in the Kennedy Center’s affairs ever since naming himself chairman in February, when he purged its traditionally bipartisan board of Biden-era appointees and restocked it with loyalists. His news conference made clear that he is in complete control of the Kennedy Center Honors: He suggested he had approved the final list of honorees himself, saying he rejected several prospective names he called “wokesters.”