US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump once again take the honors ceremony at the Kennedy Center.(Photo: Benoit Tessier, AP)

President Donald Trump once again takes the honors of the Kennedy Center.

For the second year in a row, Trump and his wife Melania will not attend the event to honor the contributions to American culture on December 2, said Stephanie Grisham, spokesman for the first lady.

Grisham told the Associated Press that the Trumps had declined the invitation due to scheduling conflicts. Trump is due to visit Argentina at the end of the month to attend the G20 summit.

Several of This year's winners, including the vocal critics of Trump, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Cher, might not be worried about the president's absence. In fact, Cher said that she wished to receive this prestigious honor "so hard" under the Obama administration and told the Associated Press that she would be "delighted" if Trump did not. Did not attend the meeting.

Related: Cher wanted to be honored at the Kennedy Center while Obama was president

TO CLOSE

Cher said she wanted to receive the Kennedy Center Honor during President Obama's tenure and asked if #MeToo would have a significant impact on the showbiz sector in the long run. (September 28)
AP

Other winners include country music star Reba McEntire, composer Phillip Glass and jazz legend Wayne Shorter.

Manuel will receive a special "pioneer" honor for the "Hamilton" musical sensation, with director Thomas Kail, choreographer Andy Blankenbuehler and music director Alex Lacamoire. They will be recognized for their "groundbreaking work" in the hip-hop musical comedy about the country's founding fathers, a first in the 41-year history of the Kennedy Center.

The show will air on Wednesday, Dec. 26 (at 8:00 pm Eastern Standard Time) on his longtime home, CBS.

Related: Reba McEntire, Cher & 'Hamilton & # 39; among the Kennedy Center winners

Trump is not the first president to ignore the Kennedy Center's event – Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter have also missed ceremonies under their presidency – but he is the first incumbent president to miss two events.

Last year, the White House announced that the president and the first lady would avoid the gala "to allow the winners to celebrate without political distraction" after the winner Norman Lear swore to boycott the event in the presence of Trump.

Among the laureates of 2017, the dancer Carmen de Lavallade, the singers Gloria Estefan and Lionel Richie, the rapper LL Cool J and Lear, writer and television producer.

Contribute: The Associated Press

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