Well, grab your popcorn and straighten that bowtie, because next week Washington is getting a front-row seat to the kind of political theater the Beltway hasn’t seen in a while — and this time, it’s literally at the theater. President Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and Second Lady Usha Vance are all set to attend the opening night of Les Misérables at the Kennedy Center. That’s right, the Trumps and the Vances are bringing star power back to D.C., and not the kind that whines about carbon footprints while hopping on private jets to climate summits.
Les Misérables — a production about revolution, law and order, and one man’s refusal to bend to mob rule — sounds about right for this crowd. You could even say it’s poetic. Trump’s affinity for the musical is no secret. He’s played its iconic tunes at rallies, and now he’s bringing it full circle to the nation’s cultural stage, the Kennedy Center, which he says was “not properly taken care of.” And really, has anything been properly taken care of under the usual crowd? Public institutions have been hollowed out by bureaucrats and woke panels more interested in pronoun policies than preserving American culture.
Trump told Fox News Digital, “I love the songs, I love the play. I think it’s great — we may extend it.” Classic Trump. Even when he’s attending a Broadway musical, he sounds like a guy negotiating a real estate deal. And honestly, let him. At this point, wouldn’t you rather see Les Misérables extended than another taxpayer-funded “experimental” performance piece involving interpretive dance and climate change metaphors?
The president also made clear that the Kennedy Center is “coming back,” and not a moment too soon. Let’s not forget what happened to our institutions under prior leadership: subsidies for mediocrity, endless panels, and diversity training sessions longer than actual rehearsals. Now, under new leadership — including the ever-capable Richard Grennell — the Kennedy Center is seeing sold-out shows and over $3 million in ticket sales just in the first two weeks. That’s not art for art’s sake — that’s results.
Of course, leave it to Melania to almost steal the show before the curtain even rises. In a clip that’s already making the rounds, viewers caught a glimpse of her facial expressions in real-time during a question from a reporter: slight annoyance, smirk, and then a graceful return to camera-ready elegance. And they say Melania doesn’t know how to act. Please. That moment alone had more range than most Oscar winners last year.
Reporter: “It’s been reported that some actors may be boycotting tonight.”
President Trump: “I couldn’t care less.. All I do is run the country well. That’s what I care about.”
Based 🔥
pic.twitter.com/bQS0dQKeeE— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) June 11, 2025
Trump also spoke on Iran:
🚨President Trump on the dangers of Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon:
“They can’t have a nuclear weapon. Very simple. They can’t have a nuclear weapon. We’re not going to allow that.”
pic.twitter.com/ltC2JonM6F— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) June 11, 2025
And here’s the cherry on top: rumors are swirling that the Kennedy Center might one day be renamed the Trump–Kennedy Center. Imagine the aneurysms that’ll trigger from the usual suspects over at NPR. But let’s be honest — if a president revitalizes a crumbling cultural institution, fills the seats, balances the books, and restores national pride, maybe slapping his name on the building isn’t such a bad idea. It sure beats naming it after some think tank-backed bureaucrat no one’s heard of.
Meanwhile, while the Left fawns over TikTokers in fishnet shirts condemning ICE agents, Trump’s over here doing two things at once: making moves against Iranian aggression and showing up in a tux to support American culture. Multitasking — imagine that.
This isn’t just about opening night at the theater. It’s about opening the curtain on what leadership looks like: strength abroad, revitalization at home, and yes, maybe a little Broadway in between. Only this time, the leading man isn’t some moody French revolutionary — it’s a billionaire president who refuses to take a bow until the job’s done.
