Workers remove Trump’s name from Kennedy Center after court ruling

Workers have begun removing the name of United States President Donald Trump from the John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC following a court ruling.

On Saturday, workers were seen on scaffolding in front of the iconic building, with white awning obscuring the removal process.

A day earlier, US District Judge Christopher Cooper rejected a last minute appeal by the center’s Trump-aligned board to block an earlier ruling calling for the president’s name to be removed.

On May 29, Cooper ruled that the building had been illegally renamed, noting that only the US Congress has the authority to pass legislation to make such a change.

In his decision on Friday, Cooper said that the public interest “is rarely served by the ‘perpetuation’ of ‘unlawful’ governmental action”.

Trump, a real estate and development heir, built his career on the ubiquitous branding of his name, which remains emblazoned across apartment buildings, casinos and golf courses in various parts of the world.

He has taken a similar approach to the presidency, renaming the since defunct US Institute of Peace, the Donald J Trump US Institute of Peace.

The White House is pushing to put Trump’s image on a $250 bill marking the 250th anniversary of the signing of the US Declaration of Independence.