Trump And Melania Booed 'Mercilessly' At Kennedy Center Opening Night
Just before the Kennedy Center's opening night performance of the musical "Les Miserables," President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump stood to be recognized. They were met with a loud chorus of boos.
Video of the moment shows the boos mixed with some cheering, with Reuters White House correspondent Jeff Mason observing that some Trump supporters in the audience shouted "USA" chants in an attempt to drown out the booing. In addition to the First Couple, both Vice President JD Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance were also in attendance.
"In an absolutely embarrassing moment, Donald Trump was just booed mercilessly at the Kennedy Center," former Lawrence County, Tennessee commissioner Chris D. Jackson tweeted.
The president and vice president were at the Kennedy Center — which is led by Trump after he appointed himself chairman earlier this year — for the opening night performance of the musical "Les Miserables," which is about a populist rebellion against a tyrannical king. The performance is on the same night of the official arrival of approximately 700 U.S. Marines Trump deployed to Los Angeles to quell protests in the second-largest U.S. city.
Prior to Trump's arrival, New York Times White House correspondent Shawn McCreesh tweeted video of a group of drag queens entering the theater, who were met with cheers from the crowd. The drag queens told the Independent that they were there not only to see "Les Miserables," but to also protest Trump banning drag performances at the Kennedy Center after he put himself in charge (the Kennedy Center went on to schedule multiple shows featuring characters in drag, like "Mrs. Doubtfire").
"Theater is supposed to be a place of community, a place of storytelling, a place of celebration, joy, catharsis and it should be open and available to all," drag performer Vagenisis told the Independent.
Others in attendance also protested Trump's presence at the show. Former Capitol Hill staffer Jason Tufele Carl Johnson tweeted a photo of himself and his date wearing t-shirts that read "democracy has no kings" and "abolish ICE," with the caption: "When you can't change your Kennedy Center tickets cause Trump turned it into a fundraiser for his fascist friends, you make a statement out of it."
Reprinted with permission from Alternet.
