Lawyers ask federal judge to order Trump administration to release Kennedy Center communication records

The outcome of the legal request will determine whether the public and lawmakers gain access to internal records detailing the administration's involvement in the decision to close a major federal performing arts institution.

• •Attorneys for Rep. Joyce Beatty filed a court motion asking U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper to compel the Trump administration to turn over withheld communications.
• •The administration has withheld records—including emails and text messages—claiming they contain privileged presidential communications.
• •Plaintiffs' lawyers state that a list of records shows Donald Trump has been in near-constant contact with Kennedy Center management.
• •The withheld documents include 19 text messages between Kennedy Center CEO Matt Floca and Trump executive assistant Natalie Harp.
• •Eleven of the messages between Floca and Harp were exchanged on Sept. 15, the day the Kennedy Center board voted to close the facility for a third time.
• •The list also includes approximately 180 center-related text messages between Floca and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
• •Judge Cooper previously ruled in May that the Kennedy Center illegally added Trump's name to the building and ordered its removal.
• •On Sept. 16, Floca ordered a temporary closure of the center's main building after the board voted to close it.
• •On Sept. 17, Judge Cooper ordered the Kennedy Center to provide 30 days' notice before making any major physical changes to the building.