If the Kennedy Center does not rename itself after Trump, the United States could let it "deteriorate" and then "demolish" it.

If the courts block the board's decision to reinstate Donald Trump's name on the facade, the White House could proceed with the demolition of the Kennedy Center, Washington's performance venue.

The Trump administration has raised the possibility of demolishing the Kennedy Center, the Washington performance venue controlled by associates of the Republican president, if the courts block the board's decision to reinstate Donald Trump's name on the facade.

The Republican president, after placing his close associates in the leadership of the institution's board of directors, had in December added his name to that of his distant Democratic predecessor to rename it the "Trump Kennedy Center".

But the courts, petitioned by the Democratic opposition which contested the legality of the name change, also denounced by the Kennedy family, ordered its annulment. The board complied in June, but on August 13 it passed a resolution including a provision for an inscription on the building recognizing Donald Trump's role in its restoration.

The Justice Department stated Monday, in court documents for a hearing scheduled for Thursday, that without this explicit recognition of Donald Trump's role, "donors will not contribute and the Center will continue on its financial and structural death slope."

A board of directors put in place by Trump

"Without these efforts, the Centre will continue to deteriorate into a dangerous and dilapidated structure, which will have to be demolished, and then it will be necessary to determine what should be built on the site, such as an open-air amphitheater overlooking the Potomac," he added, describing the architectural and financial state of the institution in apocalyptic terms.

The board of directors put in place by Donald Trump had previously insisted on the need for work to stop leaks and water seepage in the building.

Judge Christopher Cooper had ordered the board of trustees on May 29 to remove, within two weeks, any reference "to President Trump or any individual other than President Kennedy" on the building itself, on the Kennedy Center website or on its trademarks.

He had also provisionally suspended the two-year closure of the venue, considering that the council had failed in its "duty of care" by not taking into account the negative repercussions of this closure.

The magistrate nevertheless authorized the continuation of the restoration work, the "need for which appears glaring" and specified that he would not oppose a new decision to close if it were taken after a more thorough evaluation of the disadvantages and advantages.