BS BULLETIN:

• Kerry Kennedy, sister of HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., blasted President Donald Trump after the Kennedy Center board voted to close the performing arts complex.
• Kennedy accused Trump of turning the institution bearing her uncle’s name into another “bankruptcy.”
• Her broadside comes as Trump says the Kennedy Center reconstruction will not proceed if the legal fight over adding his name ultimately goes against the board.

There probably wasn’t going to be a quiet Kennedy family response to this one.

Kerry Kennedy, daughter of Robert F. Kennedy and sister of Trump Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., unloaded on President Donald Trump Tuesday night after the Kennedy Center board voted to shut down most of the performing arts complex.

Appearing with Erin Burnett on CNN, Kennedy called the situation a “tragedy” and argued that Trump was responsible for the turmoil surrounding the institution named for her uncle, President John F. Kennedy.

“This is like so many other things that Trump has touched,” Kennedy said. “It’s a bankruptcy because he adds his name to it.”

Kennedy also pushed back on the argument that the center’s problems require Trump to rescue it.

The Kennedy Center’s Trump-aligned leadership has presented a very different account. Officials have warned that the institution could be weeks away from fiscal collapse, with potential problems making payroll and paying basic building expenses. They have argued that Trump could help bring donors back and lead the center’s financial recovery.

The dispute exploded Tuesday when the board voted to close most of the Kennedy Center immediately.

Trump said the closure was necessary for safety reasons, but also announced that renovation and reconstruction would not begin while the court battle over recognizing him on the building remained unresolved.

If the board ultimately loses that fight — including at the Supreme Court — Trump said the reconstruction “will not take place.”

The Justice Department plans to seek an expedited appeal.

That leaves Kerry Kennedy publicly attacking a president whose Cabinet includes her own brother, while the future of the institution memorializing their uncle is tied up in a legal, financial and increasingly personal fight.

And she wasn’t subtle about which side she believes is responsible.

MY QUICK TAKE:

Nothing says Kennedy family reunion quite like one sibling serving in Trump’s Cabinet while another goes on CNN to accuse his boss of bankrupting Uncle Jack’s memorial.

Thanksgiving seating chart ought to be a breeze this year.

DBS WIRE SOURCES:

• Mediaite — RFK Jr.’s sister rails against Trump over Kennedy Center shutdown
• CNN — Kennedy Center faces closure amid financial crisis
• CNN — Kennedy Center officials detail fiscal-collapse warning
• Mediaite — Trump says reconstruction hinges on Kennedy Center naming fight