A ‘South Park’ Writer Predicted Trump Would Rename the Kennedy Center and Bought the URLs in Advance

A writer for South Park says he spent months preparing for what he saw as an inevitable rebrand at Washington’s premier performing arts venue.

Toby Morton, who writes for the long-running animated comedy series, told The Washington Post that he bought the domain names “trumpkennedycenter.org” and “trumpkennedycenter.com” back in August — well before the White House publicly announced plans to attach President Donald Trump’s name to The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

The purchase came months before White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in late December that the Kennedy Center board “voted unanimously” to rename the institution “the Trump-Kennedy Center.”

Morton said he decided to buy the domains after Trump, 79, “began gutting the Kennedy Center board earlier this year,” pointing to the president’s February move to dismiss the board, replace it with his own selections, and install himself as chairman.

“I thought, ‘Yep, that name’s going on the building,’” Morton told the Post. “The rest followed on schedule.”

According to the Post, Morton has a history of purchasing political domain names and turning them into satire. The paper reported he owns roughly 50 domains, including ones used to mock Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Rep. Nancy Mace, and Sen. Chuck Schumer.

Morton said he followed Trump’s Kennedy Center takeover closely throughout the year. While he didn’t spell out exactly what he plans to do with the Trump-Kennedy Center sites, he suggested the concept is clear: “It’ll absolutely reflect the absurdity of the moment. Lots of surprises. Some things are truly hard to parody, though.”

He added that the Kennedy Center is “meant to outlast any one administration or personality,” arguing it should “honor culture, not ego.” In his view, once it became a vehicle for personal branding, “satire became unavoidable.”

Morton also told the Post he hasn’t been contacted by the Trump administration or anyone close to the president about the domains — and no one has offered to buy them.

Leavitt announced in a Dec. 18 post on X that the building — dedicated in 1964 as a “living memorial” for President John F. Kennedy — would now be known as the “Trump-Kennedy Center.” She added, “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.”

The next day, workers added “The Donald Trump and” above the existing lettering on the building’s facade, which previously read, “The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts.”

Leavitt’s claim of a unanimous vote drew immediate pushback. Democratic Rep. Joyce Beatty, who holds an automatic seat on the Kennedy Center board as a congressional leader, alleged that she was repeatedly muted during the call where the renaming vote occurred.

“Participants were not allowed to voice their concerns who were online, yet it was said at the end it was a unanimous vote,” she claimed.

Members of Kennedy’s family also objected publicly. Maria Shriver called the move “downright weird,” and Kerry Kennedy said she would pull Trump’s name off the building with a “pickax.” JFK’s only grandson, Jack Schlossberg, likewise disputed that the vote was unanimous, posting on X: “Microphones were muted and the board meeting and vote NOT unanimous.” He also suggested the move was politically motivated, writing, “I’m told Trump explicitly motivated to act by JACK FOR NEW YORK. Our campaign represents everything Trump can’t stand or defeat.”

The backlash extended beyond politics and family legacy. Musician Chuck Redd, who hosts an annual Christmas Eve jazz concert at the venue, told The Associated Press he canceled his show this year after the name change appeared online and then on the building. “When I saw the name change on the Kennedy Center website and then hours later on the building, I chose to cancel our concert,” he said.