Patriots owner Robert Kraft and his wife Dana Blumberg arrive at former New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady’s Hall of Fame induction at Gillette Stadium on June 12, 2024.
President Donald Trump has named Dana Blumberg, wife of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, to the board of trustees at the Kennedy Center.
Trump announced last week that he was firing members of the cultural institution's board and naming himself its chairman. After appointing himself and others associated with his administration to the board Tuesday, it voted Wednesday to remove billionaire David Rubenstein as the chair's board, replacing him with Trump.
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Blumberg was also appointed Wednesday, the White House said in a press release Thursday, noting she would fill the remainder of Carlos Elizondo's term, ending Sept. 1, 2030. Elizondo served as White House social secretary under former President Joe Biden.
Other board members appointed by Trump this week include second lady Usha Vance, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino, and Alison Lutnick, the wife of Trump commerce secretary nominee Howard Lutnick.
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Lee Greenwood, a country singer who has been a fixture at Trump's campaign rallies, was also named to the board.
The Kennedy Center's former president, Deborah Rutter, announced that she was departing her position "proud of all we accomplished" toward the goal of living up to the center's namesake, former President John F. Kennedy.
The center said in a press release that Rutter's contract had been "terminated."
Rubenstein also posted on social media after his removal.
"I am sorry that I could not be in Washington yesterday with Deborah Rutter and all of you," he wrote. "The Kennedy Center team, led by Deborah, has done an extraordinary job supporting the Kennedy Center over many years and through a number of difficult times, thereby helping to make the Center the beacon for the performing arts its founders intended."
Blumberg and Kraft have been married since 2022.
The Kennedy Center's website lists Blumberg's name as well as a Dana Kraft. It was not immediately clear whether the latter referred to Blumberg.
