WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Since returning to# the White House earlier this year,## President Trump has made quick# work reshaping Washington, D.C.,## in his image, in some cases literally.

That# will be on full display during what he's## calling the Trump-Kennedy Center Honors,# which is being broadcast on TV tonight.

The president hosted the event from the recently# and controversially renamed building, one that## has roots tracing back to the Eisenhower# administration more than 60 years ago.

Stephanie Sy takes a closer look# at its history and evolution.

STEPHANIE SY: When the building opened to the# public in 1971, the John F. Kennedy Center for## the Performing Arts stood as a living memorial to# the late president.

That legacy stood untouched## until last week, when the Kennedy Center board,# most of whom were appointed by President Trump,## followed through on the president's wishes and# voted to rename it the Trump-Kennedy Center.

While it takes an act of# Congress to make that official,## construction teams wasted# no time.

Within 24 hours,## President Trump's name was emblazoned# alongside Kennedy's in the marble facade.

For more on this change and how it's# part of a larger effort by the president,## I'm joined by presidential# historian Mark Updegrove.

Mark, it's a pleasure to have you on the show.

Comment on this move.

Is there any president# for a sitting president to have major cultural## buildings named after him, especially ones# in which they themselves control the board?

MARK UPDEGROVE, Presidential# Historian: No, not at all.

I mean, it would be unthinkable, I think,# .. chairman of the Kennedy Center board.

That was# unprecedented.

The president is presiding over## the nation.

He has some big problems to# resolve.

And I think the American people## would agree that that is not the function of a# president.

We don't want to see our president## acting as the chairman of the# board for the Kennedy Center.

We want him addressing the challenges and# the problems that come across his desk,## as being not only the president of our# nation, but, for all practical purposes,## the leader of the free world.

So this# is unprecedented on so many levels.

STEPHANIE SY: From a historian's perspective,## why do you think it matters that the# name of this building is being changed?

MARK UPDEGROVE: We shouldn't have our presidents,## I think, thinking about things that# should be named in their honor.

President Trump is barely a quarter into# his second term in office, at a time when## most Americans are worried about affordability.# We saw that as almost -- the off-year elections## as a referendum on the Trump presidency# and his failure to deliver on the promise## of resurrecting our economy, bringing down# inflation, boosting our employment numbers.

He hasn't accomplished that, but what he has# done is renamed institutions in his honor,## not something that we see from a# president.

I think of humility as## an American value and part of the# American brand.

But, of course,## narcissism is really part of the Trump brand.

This# shouldn't surprise us, but it should alarm us.

STEPHANIE SY: Tell me more about this building and## how it originally came to be# named after President Kennedy.

MARK UPDEGROVE: The Kennedy Center was not# something that President Kennedy had imagined.## Rather, it was the thinking of Lyndon Johnson,## President Lyndon Johnson, who succeeded# President Kennedy after his assassination.

President Johnson wanted to do something to# reflect the best of the arts in America and## named the Kennedy Center in -- for President# Kennedy, partly to get it through Congress,## but partly to honor the accomplishments# of our 35th president, John F. Kennedy.

STEPHANIE SY: This is not the first time# in recent months that the president has## shown what critics say is disregard# for historical and cultural sites,## the demolition of the White# House East Wing, for instance.

As a historian, how would you frame# all of these changes taken as a whole?

MARK UPDEGROVE: I think it's very concerning,## deeply concerning, to see this# president, I think, overreach.

Fifty years ago, we called the Nixon presidency# the imperialistic presidency, but it really## pales in comparison to what we have seen from# Donald Trump.

The demolition of the East Wing## of the White House is another example of President# Trump just deciding to do something and doing it## without consulting anyone, without looking at# the rules, without looking at the precedents.

And I think that in itself is dangerous.

STEPHANIE SY: Mark, but, of course,# Trump was elected.

He was elected twice,## and he has millions of supporters.

We also know# that, as a real estate magnate, he was long known## to put his name on his properties.

Of course,# we're talking about government buildings now,## including the Institute of Peace# building, which bears his name.

His picture is now, by the way, in front of# many buildings, like at the Department of## Agriculture.

But, as much as Trump critics say# this is something that looks like we'd see in## authoritarian regimes, haven't we seen a lot of# renaming of monuments in the last several years,## for example, to more align with what# is viewed as politically correct today?

I mean, do you see parallels or contrast there?

MARK UPDEGROVE: No, I don't see any parallels.

I think there are renaming of institutions.# And a couple of examples are the JFK Airport,## which was named for President Kennedy, like the# Kennedy Center, after his assassination.

It was## posthumously named for President Kennedy.# The National Airport in Washington, D.C.,## was renamed Reagan National.

Ronald Reagan was# diagnosed with Alzheimer's early in the 1990s,## and so it was renamed for President Reagan in# 1998, when President Clinton was in office.

So President Reagan was still very much# alive, although ailing from Alzheimer's.## We don't generally see these things until a# president has left office and has rendered## a legacy.

In President Trump's case,# he is only one-quarter through his## second term in office.

We have yet to see# the legacy he will render as president.

And I think he would do well to think# that -- not about being remembered for## his name being on a building, but what# he does in the office of the presidency## of the United States to better the American# people in our nation and around the world.

STEPHANIE SY: That is Mark Updegrove,# the president of the LBJ Foundation.

Mark, thank you so much for joining us.

MARK UPDEGROVE: Thank you very much.