In one of the least surprising revelations of apparent Deep State corruption that the Trump Administration has made so far, Ric Grenell, the new head of the Kennedy Center, exposed that $26 million in “fake revenue” appears to have been found, which could indicate serious fraud and corruption.
For reference, the Kennedy Center is the performance arts center in Washington, D.C. that is known for being extremely woke, with many of its performers, such as the cast of a scheduled June performance of Les Misérables refusing to perform if Trump attends, or even during the Trump Administration generally.
President Trump made Richard Grenell the interim head of the center on February 10 in a post on Truth Social, saying, “I am pleased to announce that Ric Grenell will serve as the Interim Executive Director of The Kennedy Center. Ric shares my Vision for a GOLDEN AGE of American Arts and Culture, and will be overseeing the daily operations of the Center. NO MORE DRAG SHOWS, OR OTHER ANTI-AMERICAN PROPAGANDA — ONLY THE BEST. RIC, WELCOME TO SHOW BUSINESS!”
Grenell then revealed that the new Chief Financial Officer of the Kennedy Center had, upon taking a close look at the books, found a whopping $26 million in “phantom revenue,” or made up revenue, in the 2024 and 2025 accounts alone, a claim the former head of the center has claimed is untrue.
Announcing the allegedly missing revenue, Grenell noted that it was just in the past two budgets that the missing tens of millions of dollars were found by the CFO, saying, “Our great new CFO went through the ’24 and ’25 budgets of the Kennedy Center and found $26 million in phantom revenue, fake revenue.”
Continuing, he said that he was making a criminal referral to the local US Attorney, Jeanine Pirro, over the missing money, saying, “It’s criminal. We’re going to refer this to the US Attorney’s Office here. We’re lucky enough to have the Attorney General on the board of the Kennedy Center, who heard all the details today.”
Adding to that, Mr. Grenell said that Pirro heard the details of the missing money and that the general idea of a non-profit defrauding donors to the tune of millions is utterly unacceptable, saying, “She heard the details, and this is unacceptable in America, to have a fake revenue of $26 million fraud on previous donors. It’s on.”
"*" indicates required fields
Watch him here:
President Trump then reported the allegations at a Kennedy Center Board dinner at the White House, saying, “The previous leadership wasted millions and millions of dollars, and handed us a budget deficit of $26 million. Can you believe that? If I told you it was $25 million under balance now for the fiscal year?”
Longtime Kennedy Center President Deborah Rutter, removed by President Trump, freaked out about the allegations, saying, “I don’t know what information he was given,” Rutter said of Trump’s comments. “And I don’t know anything that has happened since Feb. 12 to May 19. I didn’t actually watch that. The good news is I was on an airplane, so I didn’t actually watch that at the time. But it’s just not true.”
Rutter added that the budget was, when she left, “a strong and healthy one.” She then said, once again denying the allegations, “I don’t actually know what he was saying, and I can’t determine, or guess, what kind of information he was given. It’s just not true from what was going on on Feb. 12.”
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video