Trump, 79, Has Deranged Rant About ‘Grass’ at Kennedy Center

President Donald Trump sharply criticized the lawn during his speech at the Performing Arts Hall on Wednesday, abruptly pivoting from announcing the Kennedy Center Honors recipients to discussing the “renovation” of Washington, D.C.

“We’re going to make it beautiful again,” the former real estate mogul told reporters and guests.

“We’re going to redesign the parks, we’re going to redesign the lawn. You know, grass lasts a lifetime, people have a lifespan, and that lawn is long gone. When you look at the parks where the grass is, it’s worn and tired.”

“We’re going to redesign the lawn to the best of its ability. I know a lot about lawns because I own several golf courses; and if you don’t have a good lawn, you’re not going to live very long.”

Trump’s rambling musings on the importance of weed came as he paid tribute to some of his 1980s heroes, several of whom were nominated for this year’s Kennedy Center Honors.

They included Hollywood actor and Trump supporter Sylvester Stallone; Phantom of the Opera star Michael Crawford; disco queen Gloria Gaynor; and country singer George Strait.

The legendary rock band Kiss was also nominated, though its lead singer, Paul Stanley, once criticized Trump’s attempts to sabotage the 2020 Georgia election as “disgusting,” “mob boss behavior,” and “a real danger to our democracy.”

Trump nonetheless called the band “fantastic people” before discussing the renovations he helped to carry out as the center’s new board chairman.

Midway through his speech, Trump looked up at the ceiling and wondered. Audience: “Look at the quality of the marble.”

“Those columns, when you see them next time, will be incredible… They are truly incredible.” If you don’t have the foundation for a building, forget it.

Trump has long viewed the Kennedy Center as a venerable institution in “deep despair” due to what he calls mismanagement.

This is also his view of Washington, D.C., more broadly, fueling his desire to assert his control over the nation’s capital, both financially and politically.

The plans unveiled this week include the deployment of the National Guard, the federalization of the Metropolitan Police, and the threat of evicting the homeless, particularly on the streets where Trump’s motorcade passes on its way to and from the White House.

The president also put his personal stamp on the White House itself, paving the Rose Garden with stone slabs and yellow umbrellas, adding gilded ornamentation to the Oval Office, and announcing plans for a $200 million ballroom reminiscent of his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.

“We’re doing a great job renovating it,” Trump said of the White House renovation on Wednesday.

“It needed it. It hadn’t been properly maintained in years.” “It’s incredible—one of the most beautiful places in the world.”