On Sunday, Joyce Beatty filed a motion with the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, demanding the release of almost 200 text messages that link former President Donald Trump to the Kennedy Center’s leadership.
The requested exchanges include 19 texts between Floca and Natalie Harp on September 15, the day the board voted to close the Center, and about 180 messages tying Floca to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
Trump’s administration argues the records fall under executive privilege, citing the president’s statutory authority to appoint board members and oversee the Center’s operations, thereby shielding communications that involve advisers outside government.
The dispute began when a federal judge ruled in May that Trump’s name had been unlawfully added to the building’s plaque and barred a two‑year renovation closure approved by the board; the Justice Department later urged the judge to lift that restriction.
Beatty’s attorneys contend that the privilege claim is overbroad, insisting the texts are essential to evaluate whether the closure decision was made with proper oversight; the court is scheduled to issue a ruling by the end of November.