Conan O’Brien Says It Was “Important” to Attend Kennedy Center Mark Twain Event Despite Trump Overhaul 

Conan O’Brien considered not attending the Kennedy Center’s March 23 Mark Twain event in the wake of President Donald Trump’s overhaul of the renowned arts center. However, he ultimately elected that it was “important to show up” in the midst of such controversy. 

“For the last couple of months with the new administration, there’s been some controversial stuff going on with the Kennedy Center,” O’Brien said during a Thursday episode of his Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend podcast. “And there was the question of, ‘Should I go, should I not go?’” 

Ultimately, the comedian decided it was vital to attend the ceremony, where he was presented with the award for lifetime achievement in comedy, so as to “honor” the recently fired board members who selected him for the prize. 

“I felt like it was important to show up because, first of all, we were brought in under the old regime,” he explained. “The people who brought me in are no longer there, but I thought we should honor their decision.” 

After returning to power, Trump announced his plans to “terminate multiple individuals from the Board of Trustees” on Truth Social in February. From there, he named himself chairman of the Kennedy Center in a vote that resulted in the center’s longtime president Deborah Rutter being fired. 

O’Brien stood by his choice to attend the event on his podcast, noting that the night “was really lovely” because he got to connect with “so many of the young people that have been working at the Kennedy Center for years.” He added that he felt “a great deal of empathy for what’s happening there” because many of the employees were “going through a lot” and “don’t know what their future is” with the center. 

While the former Tonight Show host acknowledged the grimness of the circumstances surrounding the cite, he noted that “something about the situation added to the evening somehow.” O’Brien added, “It just felt like this is not a normal event, and we all need to be on our toes and be funny, but also bring some optimism.”