Ric Grenell leaves Trump Kennedy Center role amid $257M renovation shutdown
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
Ric Grenell’s successor as president of the Trump Kennedy Center was announced Friday afternoon after President Donald Trump appeared at Truth Social to make the announcement.
The change will be officially announced on Monday, when the Trump Kennedy Center’s board of directors meets to officially suspend operations and begin construction.
Grenell, who has a background in foreign policy and assumed control of the center in February 2025 in addition to his role as special envoy, is being replaced by Matt Floca, vice president of facilities operations at the Trump Kennedy Center.
US JUDGE ORDERED THE ARREST OF THE SUSPECT WHO THREATENED TO KILL RICHARD GRENELL
President Donald Trump speaks to the media alongside Richard Grenell, chairman of the Kennedy Center Board of Trustees, during a guided tour of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts before leading a board meeting on March 17, 2025, in Washington, DC. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
A source familiar with Grenell’s thinking said the transition is a result of the construction-focused shift at the organization and is consistent with plans President Donald Trump outlined in social media posts in early February.
“I have determined that the quickest way to restore the Trump Kennedy Center to its highest level of success, beauty and grandeur is to cease entertainment activities for approximately two years,” Trump said. In a post on Truth Social last month.
The change in leadership of the Trump Kennedy Center reflects the organization’s current focus, the source added.
President Donald Trump stands at the presidential lectern while touring the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., on March 17, 2025. (Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images)
“So everything is turning into a construction site,” the source said. “This will be a construction site and [Ric is] “I’m not a builder.”
WASHINGTON NATIONAL OPERA TO LEAVE TRUMP-KENNEDY CENTER OVER NAMED FINANCIAL DIFFICULTIES
Trump also highlighted Floca’s new appointment online.
“As Vice President of Operations, Matt has helped us make tremendous progress in elevating the Center to the highest level of excellence! Complete Reconstruction of the TRUMP KENNEDY CENTER will begin after the Fourth of July Celebration.” Trump wrote.
He continued by praising Grenell’s performance in the director role: “Ric Grenell has done an excellent job helping coordinate the various elements of the Center during the transition period, and I want to thank him for the outstanding job he has done.”
Kennedy Center on the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. (Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
CLICK TO DOWNLOAD FOX NEWS APPLICATION
The renovations are slated to cost $257 million, according to figures approved by Congress in Trump’s signature Big Beautiful Bill Act last year.
Grenell declined to answer questions about what his next role would be.
