Trumps to skip Kennedy Center arts awards

Washington : Donald and Melania Trump will skip one of America's top art awards, the Kennedy Center Honors, the White House announced Saturday in the latest sign of the president's growing isolation after one of the most disastrous weeks of his young administration.

The decision -- which came after several honorees said they would boycott a White House reception for the awards -- was intended to allow the events to go ahead without "political distraction," Trump's spokeswoman said.

But the decision came at a moment of extreme political discord, as the US president faced a torrent of criticism over his reaction to the violent protests last week in Virginia, and as white nationalists gathered Saturday for a new "free speech" rally in Boston.

The exceptionally turbulent week was capped by Trump's firing Friday of top strategist Steve Bannon, a man known as a political scrapper closely associated with the white nationalism of the "alt-right" movement.

In sharp contrast, the annual Kennedy Center honors ceremony is a posh and generally non-political affair -- a highlight of the Washington social year, with tuxedo- and gown-wearing guests feting icons of American culture -- and with the president and First Lady, in prominent balcony seats, nearly always a focus of attention. 

That made the Trumps' decision all the more surprising, if not unprecedented. The president also stayed away from the annual White House correspondents' dinner in April, with then-press secretary Sean Spicer citing the president's strained relations with the press.