Jonathan Edwards

@washingtonpost Arts & Gov reporter covering Smithsonian, Kennedy Center, etc. @LivingstonAward finalist. Email: [email protected]. Signal: jle.11

[Jonathan Edwards @jonathanreports]

Excited to announce I'm the new arts and government reporter at @washingtonpost covering the Smithsonian, Kennedy Center, Library of Congress, etc — and how the Trump administration is reshaping those institutions to rewrite the American story. Tips welcome: Signal jle.11

[Jonathan Edwards @jonathanreports]

Can Trump claim executive privilege over conversations he has as Kennedy Center chairman rather than president?

DOJ lawyers are trying to shield communications about the center's operations from scrutiny in court. One legal scholar: "This doesn't even meet the laugh test."
https://t.co/hcZZhIlLFZ

[Eat DC @eat_dc]

In front of The Washington Post headquarters.

[Jonathan Edwards @jonathanreports]

EXCLUSIVE: The architect who initially designed Trump’s White House ballroom repeatedly warned the president that his plans lacked adequate emergency exits and fire-containment measures.

Trump brushed off the concerns: “I am the code.”

Incredible new reporting from @Blaskey_S and @jocwapo

https://t.co/v9YsJ3cfoM

[The Washington Post @washingtonpost]

For the first time in a while, the Kennedy Center was brimming with life.

Thousands of supporters gathered Friday, surrounding as much of the building as they could, in protest of President Trump’s takeover and closure of the venue. https://t.co/Mlk2etKBXi

[Jonathan Edwards @jonathanreports]

NEW: The Kennedy Center laid off about a dozen employees Friday, the latest cuts to an already diminished workforce as its main building remains closed amid a legal battle over President Trump’s transformation of the institution.

https://t.co/2cPq9XxB6b

[Jonathan Edwards @jonathanreports]

NEW: A photo of President Trump reviewing a printout apparently related to the Kennedy Center’s potential demolition has entered the legal fight over the institution’s future.
https://t.co/ofd1hSDznq

[Jonathan Edwards @jonathanreports]

Here's video of Trump's remarks:
https://t.co/ZmdxeRByDA

[Acyn @Acyn]

Trump basically saying The Kennedy Center will be ripped down unless his name is placed on it because in order for him to want to maintain it, his name should be on it.

(Cleaner audio version)

[Jonathan Edwards @jonathanreports]

NEW: President Trump says the Kennedy Center will have to close and ultimately be “ripped down” without his intervention, arguing that his administration deserves recognition for taking on its renovation and long-term financial support.
https://t.co/EvVAanw78o

[Jonathan Edwards @jonathanreports]

The Kennedy Center closed its doors yesterday. Now Rep. Joyce Beatty is challenging the closure in court.

Her emergency motion opens a new front in the legal fight over President Trump’s transformation of the national cultural institution.

Full story:
https://t.co/EvVAanw78o

[Jonathan Edwards @jonathanreports]

Prominent Smithsonian critic Mike Gonzalez (@Gundisalvus) says Lonnie Bunch's resignation "marks a victory for the people" but the White House needs to keep up the pressure b/c Smithsonian "needs new leadership across the entire decaying institution"

https://t.co/onDECJ59bI

[Jonathan Edwards @jonathanreports]

The Kennedy Center closed its doors yesterday. Now Rep. Joyce Beatty is challenging the closure in court.

Her emergency motion opens a new front in the legal fight over President Trump’s transformation of the national cultural institution.

Full story:
https://t.co/EvVAanw78o

[Jonathan Edwards @jonathanreports]

Breaking: Rep. Joyce Beatty has filed emergency motion challenging Kennedy Center's abrupt closure to public for two years of renovations.

"It seems Defendants may be violating the “clear and unambiguous order of the Court,” her lawyers wrote.

[Jonathan Edwards @jonathanreports]

...and stated, 'until we change the tint and tone of our workforce, we are just dancing around the edges of our greatest failure.'"

[Jonathan Edwards @jonathanreports]

The Trump admin is moving ahead with plans for signs outside the Smithsonian’s American History Museum warning visitors about what the White House calls ideological bias.

Interior Dept. expects about 12 signs at roughly $7,000 each.

w/ @ElaheIzadi

https://t.co/OtavH0fLj7

[Jonathan Edwards @jonathanreports]

To support the accusation, Burgum cited a 2000 Bunch essay in which he described "the museum profession as 'awash in whiteness'; wrote that 'the real issue is not money but the monochromatic nature of our institutions'...

[Jonathan Edwards @jonathanreports]

The White House this morning on yesterday’s vote by the Trump-led Kennedy Center board to immediately close the performing arts venue for two years.

The center did, in fact, close to the public yesterday afternoon and remains closed today.

[The White House @WhiteHouse]

The Kennedy Center Board voted nearly unanimously to close the building immediately for safety reasons and prepare for reconstruction. Renovation cannot begin until the D.C. Circuit rules on the Board’s approved name.

In the meantime, $17M raised by President Trump has been placed in the Kennedy Center account to keep it afloat.

[Jonathan Edwards @jonathanreports]

Maria Shriver, President Kennedy’s niece, weighs in after Trump said the Kennedy Center renovation “will not take place” if he ultimately loses the legal fight over adding his name to the building.

[Maria Shriver @mariashriver]

And so here we are. This statement from Trump blows my mind. That a sitting president would not let any renovations to a public building go on unless he gets to first put his name in the said building… What a sad state of affairs. What a tragedy. Actually, how small minded, how narcissistic. Actually
great men, devoted to public service and the public good do not act like this.

It seems that this man will not rest until his name is permanently connected to the name of a great president, whose memory this building was dedicated to. Imagine spending your time and your days focused on this, as everyday Americans struggle with healthcare, gas prices, rent, and food. Imagine spending your days focused on this, while a war rages under your leadership.

Enough said. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

[Jonathan Edwards @jonathanreports]

@janegreybattle Grey's reporting that, as of a few minutes ago, she had heard official had removed the emergency alert, unblocked doors and a supervisor told security that the building is open. But then another staff member told her the building was, in fact, closed.

[Jonathan Edwards @jonathanreports]

BREAKING: The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts closed Tuesday afternoon after its board of trustees, led by President Donald Trump, voted to immediately shutter its doors for two years of renovations.

From Grey Battle on the ground

[Jonathan Edwards @jonathanreports]

@janegreybattle Outside, digital signs that typically advertise upcoming performances instead flashed a red “EMERGENCY ALERT” to the public. Guards stood at the doors while, through the glass, a few staff members could be seen hugging.