Kennedy Center staff bemused as Trump picks new director: 'He was in charge of toilets'

President Donald Trump's freshly minted director of the Kennedy Center is well-liked by former colleagues, but they're a bit puzzled about why he was chosen for the job.

Matt Floca was tapped to lead the landmark performing arts center after Trump fired longtime ally Ric Grenell earlier this month. Sources close to the Kennedy Center told CNN that he impressed the president with his knowledge of building and construction during tours.

“He really will just be overseeing the facility, the renovation, because Matt’s expertise does not lie in marketing, it does not lie in artistic programming, it doesn’t lie in fundraising, it doesn’t lie in literally any other category of arts management other than the facility itself,” a source close to the Kennedy Center said.

“During the two-year renovation there will no doubt need to be a leader in charge of the everything else,” that person added.

Floca caught the 79-year-old president's eye as Trump took a personal interest in renovating the Kennedy Center — to which he had slapped his own name after the board voted to rename it the “Donald J. Trump and the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" — and was impressed by his granular knowledge of the aging building.

“He was in charge of HVAC and toilets," explained a former colleague at the Kennedy Center. "He’s deeply an operations guy, he wants to talk about structural engineering and load capacity."

Floca started working at the Kennedy Center two years ago, during the Biden administration, after working for the D.C. government on capital construction and facilities, and a former colleague said he had been managing “standard issue facilities" and overseeing upgrades to the building and security before he was elevated to director.

“He’s never been the person that’s running an organization," said one source with knowledge of the dynamic. "He has had no experience with that. He’s always had a buffer.”

The Kennedy Center is expected to close to the public after the Fourth of July celebration, but some insiders shared concerns with CNN that Floca may lack the experience to manage Trump's planned renovations along with all the other elements the director job entails.

“There is a lot that will need to happen during this closure, including communications, donor management, artist recruitment, patrons — if he’s myopic in focusing on the architecture and these upgrades, who is doing the other 80 percent of the job?” said a former colleague.

The source familiar with the dynamics said there has been talk about appointing someone to serve alongside Floca to held lead the arts institution, which another source disputed, but it remains to be seen how he will react to Trump's demands.

“Being beholden to the president of the United States doesn’t necessarily mean that Matt’s going to be able to make the best decisions for the building,” said the source with knowledge of the dynamic.