Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Ranking Member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee (EPW), has opened an investigation into corruption at the Kennedy Center.

According to documents and a letter obtained by OperaWire, Whitehouse is requesting answers from Ambassador Richard Grenell, President of the Kennedy Center.

According to the documents, the Kennedy Center has discounted event rentals for political allies like NewsNation and the American Conservative Union Foundation, and tens of thousands of dollars have been spent on luxury hotel rooms, lavish meals, and entertainment for friends and newly hired staff. The documents also reveal that “work contracts were funneled to personal friends, costing the Center tens of thousands of dollars each month.” Additionally, FIFA is getting the performing arts center for free, amounting to $5,038,444 in losses for the Center, which the Center denied in a statement to OperaWire.

This investigation comes as there have been multiple reports that state that the ticket sales at the Kennedy Center are plummeting since President Trump took over the Performing Arts Center, and the Washington National Opera is considering leaving. The Kennedy Center has denied both reports.

In a press release, Senator Whitehouse said, “Taken together, these actions display a profound disregard for fiduciary responsibility, established financial controls, and the governance of the Kennedy Center. Neither the Center’s enabling legislation nor appropriate fiduciary management allow the President of the United States or the President of the Center to unilaterally enter into zero-dollar use agreements, extend substantial discounts to politically affiliated entities, or disburse funds for personal or political purposes. These actions betray the purpose set forth by Congress, allowing the Center to become a swamp for cronyism and self-dealing.”

According to the documents obtained, there is a contract that states that FIFA will pay a total of zero dollars for the rental during the period of Nov. 24 through Dec 12. That period will cost the Kennedy Center a loss of $5,038,444, including a rescheduling fee for the National Symphony Orchestra of $1.9 million and $250,000 in other rescheduled events.

According to the documents, this rental also caused the cancelation of three rehearsals by the Choral Arts Society, which cost them a total of $2,681 per rehearsal.

The documents also reveal that NewNation and the American Conservative Union Foundation got discounts for their events. On Oct. 14 and 15, NewsNation paid $12,300 for the event, which, per the contract, was a discount from the $14,820 licensing fee. For another event on Sept. 22, 2025, the same news organization allegedly paid $7,300, which was a discount from the $19,820 fee.

Meanwhile, the American Conservative Union got the hall for a total cost of $20,007 as opposed to the normal $42,000 fee.

The documents also show that a video company ZenVideo was paid a total of $32,499.99. There were also invoices to the Kennedy Center that were made for luxury dinners and hotel stays for employees and friends at the Watergate Hotel.

The documents come days after a recent interview with the Guardian revealed that the Kennedy Center asked the Washington National Opera’s Artistic Director to lower artists’ costs. Zambello told the Guardian, “They have said: ‘Could we consider less expensive artists?’ We’re a feeding ground for bigger companies in this country. So we’re already hiring people who are on the rise and whose fees will get a lot more expensive later.”

Grenell also issued an edict requiring all shows to be “net neutral,” with costs fully covered by box-office returns and donor contributions.

Zambello also noted that “box-office figures have now ceased to be internally circulated among the center’s creative teams as part of the standard system of daily show reports.”

The documents also come after the Washington Post reported that the box office was down by 40 percent compared with a 2018 baseline.

Grenell has denied all the reports and took to social media to disparage journalists and Senator Whitehouse, stating “Senator Whitehouse just stepped in it. He attacked the Kennedy Center with outrageous claims. So we responded with the facts. Oh boy – the facts are so clear: the NYT and the Senator’s letter writer are going to be embarrassed. We have a balanced budget, we’ve raised a whopping $117 MILLION under Donald Trump  – and FIFA has paid millions plus covered all expenses (the NYT made a gigantic mistake by assuming FIFA was a rental not a major Sponsor).” 

He added in another tweet, “Senator Whitehouse was proven wrong by the facts. So why is the Washington Post reporter Janay Kingsberry unable to push back on him? When he says FIFA didn’t pay…it’s a lie. Why does Janay simply repeat the lie and the response? The answer is that she’s unable to understand finances. Arts reporters are cheering the demise of Arts Institutions when they can’t report honesty on the facts Arts Institutions are facing.” 

He also released a letter in which he claims the Kennedy Center was paid millions by FIFA and noted that they have raised $117 million while also noting that no shows have been canceled.

OperaWire has repeatedly asked for an interview with Grenell and for financial documents, but has received no answer.

Here is Senator Whitehouse’s letter to Grenell:

Dear Ambassador Grenell:

I write regarding your management of a treasured American institution and memorial.

Originally created in 1958 as the National Cultural Center, the institution you oversee benefited greatly from a $30 million fundraising campaign led by President John F. Kennedy, Mrs.

Jacqueline Kennedy, and former President Dwight D. Eisenhower and Mrs. Mamie Eisenhower, reflecting bipartisan support for a world-class performing arts institution in the nation’s capital. In 1964, following President Kennedy’s assassination, Congress and President Lyndon B. Johnson designated the Center as a living memorial to President Kennedy to honor his lifelong devotion to the performing arts in the United States.

For over six decades, across eleven U.S. presidential administrations, the Kennedy Center has served as a national symbol of artistic excellence, cultural diplomacy, and bipartisan civic spirit. Its statutory mission is to present performing arts (including music, opera, drama, and dance) from the United States and abroad; promote itself as the National Center for the Performing Arts; ensure high-quality, diverse education and outreach programs; provide facilities for civic activities; and maintain a memorial to President Kennedy. As a federally chartered 501(c)(3) nonprofit, the Center is funded by taxpayer dollars and private philanthropy.

The Center’s leadership is strictly obligated to uphold rigorous financial stewardship and operational transparency. Any deviation for personal or political gain constitutes a profound betrayal of its mission and the public trust.

As an ex officio member of the Board of Trustees of the Kennedy Center and Ranking Member of the Committee on Environment and Public Works Committee, which has jurisdiction over all public buildings owned by the U.S. government, I have ample reason to be concerned by reports and information that cast doubt on your stewardship of the institution. Documents obtained by Environment and Public Works Committee Democratic staff indicate that you have turned the Kennedy Center away from its mission. Contracts, invoices, and facility use agreements reveal that you operate the Center for the enrichment of your friends and acquaintances, to dole out political favors, and as a playground for the President of the United States and his allies. The Center is being looted to the tune of millions of dollars in foregone revenue, cancelled programming, unpaid use of its facilities, and wasteful spending on luxury restaurants and hotels—an unprecedented pattern of self-dealing, favoritism, and waste, including:

• Free and exclusive use of the Kennedy Center for FIFA. As the Washington Post reported, according to a contract that Committee staff also obtained, your team granted the global sports organization FIFA free and exclusive use of the entire Kennedy Center campus from November 24 through December 12, 2025. Internal estimates show that this giveaway will cost the Center $5,038,444 in direct rental and programming rescheduling losses, internal production labor, contracted services, food & beverage, and equipment rentals. The documents show that your team also cancelled or rescheduled multiple events that fit the Kennedy Center’s mission to accommodate FIFA.
• Contracts for your personal friends. On April 14, 2025, the Center entered into a $15,000-per-month contract with a former colleague from your tenure as U.S. Ambassador to Germany, to perform “policy research and speechwriting” on your behalf. It is unclear how this work relates to your role at the Kennedy Center, since the contract is devoid of any detail, nor have you delivered any substantive speeches or remarks that would justify these payments. In May 2025, the Center entered into another $10,833.33- per-month contract with Jeff Halperin, Kari Lake’s husband, for “social media capture/ editing” services. Mrs. Lake, the Republican nominee for Arizona governor in 2022 and a 2024 U.S. Senate candidate, now serves as a Trump-appointed senior advisor at the U.S. Agency for Global Media and is a staunch Trump ally. You and Mrs. Lake frequently appeared alongside one another as surrogates for then- presidential candidate Donald Trump prior to the 2024 election.
• Lavish meals and entertainment. Between April 17 and July 2, 2025, your team charged the Center $10,773.19 for private lunches, dinners, and alcohol purchases unrelated to fundraising or development purposes. Your team charged the Center for “Champagne Service,” multi-bottle wine orders, “VIP Gold Card” privileges, and a multi-hundred-dollar meals at the Center’s restaurant. Detailed receipts show Nick Meade, Vice President of Governance and your longtime political aide, and Rick Loughery, your Executive Vice President, charged several hundreds of dollars for meals including charcuterie and numerous bottles of rosé. These two also hold leadership positions at political organizations you founded or led, including Fix California and Fix USA.
• Luxury hotel accommodations for friends and staff. Between April 21 and July 16, 2025, your team charged the Center $27,185 for Watergate Hotel rooms for new hires and your associates, including Lisa Dale, Ms. Lake’s best friend and newly hired Senior Vice President for Development at the Center; Marlon Bateman, an independent contractor reportedly tasked with staff terminations; and Taylor Strand, Senior Marketing official at the Center and CEO of Magnify Media Partners. We understand these multi- night stays, missed reservation charges, and valet parking expenses to be unprecedented charges to the Center.
• Discounted rentals to political allies. Contracts show that the Center extended steep rental discounts to organizations politically aligned with President Trump, including a $19,820 discount for a NewsNation town hall and a $21,982.60 discount to the American Conservative Union Foundation for a CPAC summit entitled “The Christian Persecution Summit,” with “waived costs from OOP” (the Office of the President) noted in the contract file.

Taken together, these actions display a profound disregard for fiduciary responsibility, established financial controls, and the governance of the Kennedy Center. Neither the Center’s enabling legislation nor appropriate fiduciary management allow the President of the United States or the President of the Center to unilaterally enter into zero-dollar use agreements, extend substantial discounts to politically affiliated entities, or disburse funds for personal or political purposes. These actions betray the purpose set forth by Congress, allowing the Center to become a swamp for cronyism and self-dealing. They are particularly troubling given recent reports that the Kennedy Center is operating over budget among falling ticket sales.

Given the importance of preserving the Kennedy Center’s statutory mission, and ensuring public trust in the Center’s governance, we request that you provide answers to the following questions and produce the requested documents no later than December 4, 2025:

1. Provide a copy of the Center’s complete bylaws, as in effect today.
2. What policies and procedures govern the Kennedy Center’s financial management, contracting, expense approval, and ethics standards?

1. 1. Provide copies of all policies, procedures, and internal guidance regarding financial management, contracting, expense approval, and ethics or conflict-of- interest standards in effect from February 7, 2025, through the present.
   2. Describe the process by which contracts for independent contractors, consultants, or personal associates are reviewed, approved, and monitored, including any role played by the Board of Trustees or subcommittees.
   3. Describe the policies governing reimbursement for travel, meals, lodging, and entertainment, including any limits or prohibitions, and indicate whether these policies were followed in practice.
   4. Has the Center’s General Counsel or any member of the Board of Trustees expressed written or verbal concerns about potential conflicts of interest or misuse of funds to you or other senior staff since February 7, 2025? If so, provide all related internal communications.
   5. Detail the official process for reporting ethical concerns or suspected financial impropriety by senior leadership, and identify the highest level body (Board, committee, external auditor) responsible for investigating such claims.

3. What contracts or expenditures since February 7, 2025, have benefited individuals personally associated with present Kennedy Center leadership or the President of the United States?

1. 1. Identify all instances in which you or senior leadership approved expenditures, contracts, or facility use benefiting such individuals, and provide supporting documentation for each.
   2. Provide copies of all contracts entered into since February 7, 2025, with individuals personally associated with Kennedy Center leadership, along with corresponding invoices, payment records, and documentation of services rendered.
   3. Explain the justification for each such contract, including how the services rendered relate to the Kennedy Center’s statutory mission and how performance or deliverables were verified.

4. What expenditures or benefits have been provided to Center staff, contractors, or associates since February 7, 2025?

1. 1. Provide detailed records of all expenditures for hotel accommodations, meals, entertainment, and related benefits provided to Center staff, contractors, or associates.
   2. Explain the justification for providing multi-night hotel accommodation, valet service, alcohol, or luxury meals, and identify who approved each expenditure.

5. What measures are in place to review contracts, expenditures, and facility use?

1. 1. Describe any internal or external audits conducted during your tenure regarding contracting, expense reimbursement, or facility use, and provide the findings of those audits.
   2. Explain the role of the Board of Trustees, including any finance or audit committees, in reviewing and approving contracts, rental agreements, or significant expenditures.

6. What was the process and justification for the Kennedy Center’s agreement with FIFA?

1. 1. Provide internal cost estimates, scheduling impacts, and any Board discussions or approvals related to zero-dollar use of the Kennedy Center campus for the FIFA agreement.
   2. Explain the justification for granting rental discounts of zero-dollar access, including how such arrangements were consistent with the Center’s statutory mission.
   3. Reports have suggested that FIFA may consider awarding its “Peace Prize” to former President Trump; please explain whether any such speculation or related communications factored into discussions or decisions regarding the Kennedy Center’s partnership with FIFA.

7. How has donor support changed under current leadership?

1. 1. Provide the total number of recurring (donated for two consecutive years) major- gift donors who have withdrawn or suspended their financial support since February 7, 2025, and indicate the total value of those commitments.
   2. Identify all new donors solicited by current leadership whose contributions exceed $50,000, including the amounts pledged to the Kennedy Center and the amounts that have been received to date.
   3. Describe any changes in donor engagement or fundraising strategies implemented under current leadership and explain how these efforts align with the Center’s statutory mission and financial management policies.
   4. Identify any new donors whose contributions were solicited or accepted after meetings, events, or communications involving the President of the United States, and indicate whether any of these donors are individuals recently pardoned by the President.

Here is Grenell’s letter