Trump to host Kennedy Center Honors, contemplates celebrating himself

President Trump announced he will host this year's Kennedy Center Honors awards ceremony when he visited the site Wednesday.Why it matters: Trump has asserted control over one of the country's preeminent performing arts institutions after shunning it during his first term. During the press conference, Trump announced George Strait, Michael Crawford, Sylvester Stallone, Gloria Gaynor and rock band Kiss will be this year's honorees.Context: Trump in February installed himself as head of the Kennedy Center and removed adversarial members of the traditionally bipartisan board. His takeover prompted boycotts from major artists. Meanwhile, subscription sales for the Kennedy Center's upcoming season decreased about $1.6 million compared to last year — a 36% drop."They'll say 'Trump made it political,'" the president said. "But I think if we made it our kind of political, we'll go up. Let's see if I'm right about that."What he's saying: Trump said he always wanted to win a Kennedy Center award. "I waited and waited and waited, and I said ,'To hell with it, I'll become chairman and I'll give myself an honor,'" he said Wednesday. "Next year we'll honor Trump, OK? This year the board has selected a truly exceptional class of honorees." What we're watching: House Republicans last month passed a spending bill amendment through committee that would rename The Kennedy Center after Trump and the opera house after first lady Melania Trump. The changes, though, would violate the law that created the Kennedy Center, NBC News reported. Flashback: During his prior term, Trump was the first president to skip all four years of the Kennedy Center Honors after some recipients declined to meet him at a White House reception. Go deeper: Kennedy Center subscriptions drop $1.6M under TrumpEditor's note: This story was updated with developments.

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