STAYING PUT

West Hollywood City Council Demands Removal of Trump’s Walk of Fame Star

A new political assault on Donald Trump’s sidewalk monument has been launched. However, given that the star of a convicted murderer still twinkles, chances of action seem remote.

It has shrugged off attacks by pickax and sledge hammer.

Now Donald Trump’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is facing a political assault.

West Hollywood’s city council unanimously voted Monday to seek the removal of Donald Trump's Hollywood star, according to Mayor John Duran.

The star has been a magnet for anti-Trump activists.

Last month, 24-year-old Austin Mikel Clay destroyed Trump’s star with a pickax; it was also the subject of a faux-urination skit by comedian George Lopez, and the focus of art protests. Two years ago, it was attacked with a sledgehammer. But vandalism was not mentioned in the debate, according to the Los Angeles Times, with the resolution being passed on the basis of Trump’s “disturbing treatment of women and other actions that do not meet the shared values of the City of West Hollywood, the region, state, and country.”

However as the statement suggests, the resolution is nothing more than a glorified request, as control of the stars rests with the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, which has never removed stars in the past—not even the one belonging to Bill Cosby, who’s been found guilty on three felony counts of aggravated indecent assault, or the musician Spade Cooley, who was convicted of murdering his wife in 1961.

Given that the Walk of Fame features more than 2,500 plaques dedicated to Hollywood celebrities and industry figures, scrubbing it of all moral deviants would be a daunting task.

However, there has been widespread disbelief that the Walk of Fame committee has continued to resist the removal of Cosby’s star following his conviction.

“The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a registered historic landmark. Once a star has been added to the Walk, it is considered a part of the historic fabric of the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Because of this, we have never removed a star from the Walk,” said Leron Gubler, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce president and CEO.

Austin Mikel Clay was charged with one felony count of vandalism on Monday in Los Angeles.

Prosecutors say Clay took a pickax to Trump’s star on Hollywood Boulevard on July 25. The star recognized Trump for his work on the TV reality show The Apprentice. It has been repaired.

Clay could face as much as three years in jail if convicted.

The star was also vandalized with a sledgehammer before the November 2016 election.

The late Johnny Grant, who chaired the Hollywood Walk of Fame Committee for many years, was once asked if stars’ plaques could be removed and replied, “A celebrity’s politics, philosophy, irrational behavior, or outrageous remarks have never been cause to remove a Walk of Fame star.”

Needless to say, not everyone approves of the council’s resolution.

See more of our coverage in your search results.

ADD THE DAILY BEAST ON GOOGLE

Tom SykesEuropean Editor at Large

Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast here.