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Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is weighing in on President Donald Trump’s decision to rename the Kennedy Center to add his own name to the memorial building.
In a new interview that was released on Thursday, January 8, CBS News chief White House correspondent Nancy Cordes asked RFK Jr. whether he understood why his family members were “upset” by the move.
“Of course, I understand it, but I have bigger fish to fry,” RFK Jr., 71, said in response.
The secretary of health and human services added that other issues were higher priorities for him to worry about.
“If we lose any children in this country to obesity, heart disease — 77 percent of our kids can’t qualify for the military. Saving one life is more important to me than the name on a building,” he continued.
On December 18, 2025, the White House confirmed the board of the Kennedy Center voted to rename the building that is in honor of President John F. Kennedy.
“I have just been informed that the highly respected Board of the Kennedy Center, some of the most successful people from all parts of the world, have just voted unanimously to rename the Kennedy Center to the Trump-Kennedy Center, because of the unbelievable work President Trump has done over the last year in saving the building,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt wrote via X at the time. “
Donald Trump and RFK Jr. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
She continued, “Not only from the standpoint of its reconstruction, but also financially, and its reputation. Congratulations to President Donald J. Trump, and likewise, congratulations to President Kennedy, because this will be a truly great team long into the future! The building will no doubt attain new levels of success and grandeur.”
In response, prominent members of the high-profile Kennedy family voiced their opposition to the move.
Maria Shriver, who is the niece of JFK, shared her disappointment after learning about the renaming.
“The Kennedy Center was named after my uncle, President John F Kennedy. It was named in his honor. He was a man who was interested in the arts, interested in culture, interested in education, language, history,” Shriver, 70, wrote via Instagram on December 18, 2025. “He brought the arts into the White House, and he and my Aunt Jackie [Kennedy Onassis] amplified the arts, celebrated the arts, stood up for the arts and artists.”
Shriver continued, “It is beyond comprehension that this sitting president has sought to rename this great memorial dedicated to President Kennedy. It is beyond wild that he would think adding his name in front of President Kennedy’s name is acceptable. It is not.”
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A day later, Shriver doubled down on her view of the renaming, slamming Trump via social media.
“Adding your name to a memorial already named in honor of a great man doesn’t make you a great man. Quite the contrary,” Shriver wrote via Instagram on December 19. “Putting your name on top of someone else’s doesn’t mean that people will speak of you in the same breath as the other man. Putting your name above another man’s name on his existing memorial… What is that about? Truly? What’s that about?”
Meanwhile, JFK’s only grandson, Jack Schlossberg, 32, vowed to fight back against the Kennedy Center’s new name.
“SEND ME TO CONGRESS TO SMOKE THESE FOOLS — MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD LOUD AND CLEAR,” Schlossberg, who is running for New York’s 12th Congressional District, said via Instagram on December 18, 2025. “I won’t back down or be drowned out.”
