(CNN) 鈥� President announced an aggressive plan Friday evening to gut the existing board of trustees at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and oust its chairman, billionaire philanthropist David Rubenstein, a remarkable move aimed at remaking the nation鈥檚 cultural center.
Trump said he would be appointing himself as chairman of the board.
鈥淎t my direction, we are going to make the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., GREAT AGAIN. I have decided to immediately terminate multiple individuals from the Board of Trustees, including the Chairman, who do not share our Vision for a Golden Age in Arts and Culture,鈥� . 鈥淲e will soon announce a new Board, with an amazing Chairman, DONALD J. TRUMP!鈥�
Trump has sought to reshape the use of executive authority since taking office last month, and this effort amounts to a striking and personal example of retribution aimed at political enemies.
Rubenstein, the board鈥檚 current chairman, is an ally of former President Joe Biden.
Trump鈥檚 announcement also dove directly into the culture wars as he called out the center鈥檚 programming.
Trump continued, 鈥淛ust last year, the Kennedy Center featured Drag Shows specifically targeting our youth 鈥� THIS WILL STOP. The Kennedy Center is an American Jewel, and must reflect the brightest STARS on its stage from all across our Nation. For the Kennedy Center, THE BEST IS YET TO COME!鈥�
Presidents appoint members to the board on a rolling basis. It was not immediately clear who would be impacted by the news.
鈥淭he Kennedy Center is aware of the post made recently by POTUS on social media,鈥� the center said in a statement. 鈥淲e have received no official communications from the White House regarding changes to our board of trustees. We are aware that some members of our board have received termination notices from the administration.鈥�
The center acknowledged that its governing statute did not bar the new administration from replacing board members but noted, 鈥淭his would be the first time such action has been taken with the Kennedy Center鈥檚 board.鈥�
CNN has reached out to several members who were appointed by Democratic presidents for comment and to a spokesperson for Shonda Rhimes, who serves as the board鈥檚 treasurer.
Reached for comment Friday evening, one member of the board who was appointed by a Democratic president said they had not yet received any communication from the Kennedy Center about their status on the board.
Current members appointed by Trump include Lee Greenwood, Paolo Zampolli, and Attorney General Pamela Bondi.
Last week, the Kennedy Center鈥檚 president, Deborah Rutter, announced plans to step down at the end of the year. The board had started a search for her replacement and retained a headhunter. Choosing her successor, it appears, will fall to the president.
This story has been updated with additional details.
CNN鈥檚 Kevin Liptak and Kaanita Iyer contributed to this report.
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