President Donald Trump made history Sunday night as the first sitting president to host the Kennedy Center Honors gala, delivering a performance filled with humor and pointed jabs at critics while celebrating American artistic achievement.
The president and first lady Melania Trump arrived hand-in-hand on the red carpet in matching black tie attire at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
The evening honored music and film icons including Sylvester Stallone, the rock band Kiss, country music legend George Strait, disco star Gloria Gaynor and Tony Award-winning actor Michael Crawford.
Trump wasted no time making waves with his opening remarks, immediately praising the night’s honorees before quipping, “I think I’m going to nominate myself next year.”
The president then toured ongoing renovations at the venue, describing the experience as “like resting for me.”
He boasted about the construction progress, referring to the facility as “the Trump-Kennedy center” before pausing and adding, “I mean, the Kennedy Center. I’m sorry. This is terribly embarrassing.”
The jokes drew laughter from the audience, though they came after Trump had fundamentally reshaped the institution’s leadership.
During his second term, he ousted the center’s previous leadership and appointed Republican supporters to the board of trustees, who subsequently elected him chair.
Earlier on the red carpet, Trump was asked about the possibility of renaming the building the “Trump Kennedy Center.”
He deflected, saying, “I don’t know, I hear that. That’s not up to me. That’s up to the board, they make that decision. We have a very prestigious board.”
Inside the hall, Trump entertained the crowd with his characteristic style.
He described the audience members, which included Hollywood stars and cabinet officials, as “miserable, horrible people.”
“If there is one thread that connects all of these amazing artists together, it is the word persistence,” Trump said.
“I can say that with a lot of members of our audience. I know so many of you. You are persistent. Many of you are miserable, horrible people. You are persistent. You never give up. Sometimes I wish you’d give up, but you don’t.”
The president praised each honoree individually.
He called George Strait the “undisputed champion of country” and described Gloria Gaynor as a “disco icon” with “unwavering faith,” noting, “There has never been a voice like this one. That voice moved the world to dance.”
The Daily Mail reported that Trump showered praise on Stallone for his film career and described Crawford as “one of the brightest lights ever to grace the stage of Broadway and a very special man.”
He reserved his highest praise for Kiss, calling them “one of the greatest bands in the history of rock and roll… straight out of the borough of Queens.”
Trump described each member as “giants” and paid special tribute to the late Ace Frehley, the band’s original lead guitarist, who died in October after being injured during a fall.
The president revealed Frehley’s daughter was in attendance and had been at a White House presentation the previous night.
“This was a daughter who cried all last night and that told me one thing. She loved her father. I usually see people who don’t cry. They couldn’t care less,” he said.
Trump also took aim at late-night host Jimmy Kimmel, despite Kimmel never having hosted the Kennedy Center Honors.
“Maybe I haven’t prepared, maybe you want to be a little bit loose,” Trump said when asked about his preparation.
“If you look at the great hosts, Johnny Carson, Bob Hope, those are the greats. And if you look at the not-so-greats, Jimmy Kimmel, who was just terrible.”
He added, “If I can’t beat out Jimmy Kimmel in terms of talent, then I don’t think I should be president.”
