The ranking Democrat on the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, which oversees public buildings, is investigating leadership at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts for what he says are "millions in lost revenue, luxury spending, and preferential treatment for Trump allies."
The committee's ranking member Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) sent a letter outlining the claims to Kennedy Center president, Richard Grenell. Grenell denied the allegations in a letter that was posted to the Kennedy Center's social media.
The Kennedy Center's building is maintained by the federal government, though its programming and staff are supported by a combination of private and federal funds.
Whitehouse's letter, plus documentation obtained by Democrats on the Senate committee, are posted on its website. The documents appear to show that non-arts groups are getting significant discounts on rental fees at the Kennedy Center. There is a copy of a contract with FIFA that shows the international soccer organization will not pay the usual $5 million in rental fees when it takes over the center for three weeks in order to announce next year's World Cup draw, as first reported by The Washington Post.
Senate Democrats obtained copies of contracts given to Grenell's friends and associates, worth tens of thousands of dollars.
In his letter to Grenell, Whitehouse said these and other actions show a "profound disregard" for leadership's "fiduciary responsibility."
Allegations of financial mismanagement come at a time of declining audiences, artist cancellations, layoffs and resignations at the Kennedy Center.
An analysis by The Washington Post found that ticket sales at the Kennedy Center have taken a nosedive; on average, 43% of tickets have not been sold since early September. On the same day as the Post's reporting, Grenell announced the center had raised "a record-breaking" $58 million from donors and sponsors in 30 days "with more on the horizon."
In his response to Whitehouse, Grenell wrote that he is "concerned about your careless attacks on me and my team" and that the Senator's letter is "filled with partisan attacks and false accusations." Grenell denied Whitehouse's claims and alleged financial mismanagement by the center's previous leadership, including "a bloated staff" and "deferred maintenance" that "was quite literally making the building fall apart." President Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act includes $257 million for repairs, maintenance and restoration of the Kennedy Center.
Addressing the claim that FIFA will be using the center for free, instead of paying a $5 million rental fee to the Kennedy Center, Grenell said the international soccer organization has "given us several million dollars, in addition to paying all of the expenses for this event in lieu of a rental fee.…A simple rental fee would not have been enough to cover the magnitude of the event."
Grenell has slammed previous Kennedy Center leadership a number of times. In this week's letter to Whitehouse, he wrote that "for the first time in decades, we have a balanced budget at the Kennedy Center." In May he told the Kennedy Center board the "deferred maintenance of the Kennedy Center is criminal."
Former Kennedy Center president Deborah Rutter and board chair David Rubenstein rejected Grenell's characterization of their work. Rutter wrote, "Perhaps those now in charge are facing significant financial gaps and are seeking to attribute them to past management."
In a statement to NPR from May, Rubenstein said, "financial reports were reviewed and approved by the Kennedy Center's audit committee and full board as well as a major accounting firm." That audit committee included board members appointed by Trump during his first term, including U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi. At the time, she was a special advisor to Trump and worked on his defense team during his Senate impeachment trial.
Whitehouse is requesting the Kennedy Center supply him with "documents and information about the Center's financial management practices, expenditures, donors, and contracts under Grenell's leadership by December 4, 2025."
This story was edited by Jennifer Vanasco.
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