Trump says Ric Grenell will be Kennedy Center’s interim executive director
By Kevin Liptak, CNN
(CNN) — President Donald Trump said Monday he is naming Ric Grenell, a longtime confidant already serving in multiple administration positions, to lead the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on a temporary basis after declaring himself the institution’s chairman late last week.
“I am pleased to announce that Ric Grenell will serve as the Interim Executive Director of The Kennedy Center. Ric shares my Vision for a GOLDEN AGE of American Arts and Culture, and will be overseeing the daily operations of the Center,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“NO MORE DRAG SHOWS, OR OTHER ANTI-AMERICAN PROPAGANDA — ONLY THE BEST,” Trump wrote. “RIC, WELCOME TO SHOW BUSINESS!”
Trump on Friday said he was dismissing the Kennedy Center’s board and installing himself as its chairman. On Monday, a roster of previous board members had been scrubbed from the center’s website.
Among the board’s most immediate tasks had been to identify a replacement for the center’s president, Deborah Rutter, who announced last month her intent to step down. The board had retained a headhunting firm to help identify a new leader.
Grenell is currently serving as Trump’s envoy for special missions, a role that recently took him to Venezuela for meetings with the country’s leaders focused in part on releasing detained Americans.
He has also acted as a representative for the Trump administration in California as the state recovers from wildfires in Los Angeles.
The-CNN-Wire
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