Trump's White House Makeover Rankles Washington

Debra J. Saunders
Fri, 24 Oct 2025 11:49:50 -0700
Opinion

WASHINGTON — The partial government shutdown hit its 23rd day Thursday, yet much of Washington has been consumed with rage because President Donald Trump tore down the East Wing of the White House to make way for his dream Big Beautiful Ballroom.

The timing is so convenient for the 47th president that you have to wonder if Trump decided to tear down the East Wing for a new building now because it detracts from the shutdown. Naaah. He doesn't care.

And as I think about it, the real beef critics have with the demolition may be that Trump got the teardown done at lightning speed in a town that is used to a snail's pace and partisan sabotage. The demo job started Monday was done by Thursday afternoon.
Updated: Fri Oct 24, 2025

WASHINGTON — The partial government shutdown hit its 23rd day Thursday, yet much of Washington has been consumed with rage because President Donald Trump tore down the East Wing of the White House to make way for his dream Big Beautiful Ballroom.

The timing is so convenient for the 47th president that you have to wonder if Trump decided to tear down the East Wing for a new building now because it detracts from the shutdown. Naaah. He doesn't care.

And as I think about it, the real beef critics have with the demolition may be that Trump got the teardown done at lightning speed in a town that is used to a snail's pace and partisan sabotage. The demo job started Monday was done by Thursday afternoon.

Four days — that's just over a third of the 11 days during which former Trump communications director Anthony Scaramucci held the job. The speed of government has accelerated during Trump's second term.

Now that the teardown is done, there's no way to put Humpty Dumpty back together again. After his term out of office, Trump apparently committed to doing what he wants first, and not so much as asking for permission later. He left no room for the usual stall tactics that kill housing developments and other big construction projects.

When you see the photos of what's left of the East Wing, beware. The East Wing is not the stately building you've seen with the amazing crescent-shaped portico that overlooks the South Lawn. That building is the executive residence. It's easy to be confused about the building's name because the residence building with the portico houses the famous East Room, which remains untouched.

(Yes, I know Trump has said the project would not "interfere with the current building" — and that turned out to be wrong.)

I look at the portico and recall the October evening in 2020 when Trump returned from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for coronavirus treatment. His walk up the winding stairway showed a president on the mend.

The East Wing, which was first built in 1902 and rebuilt in 1942, is a less visible building that has served as the traditional site for first ladies' offices.

Trump was able to move at warp speed because he and big donors are funding the teardown and the new building with private money, including, according to the White House, Apple, Google, Amazon, Microsoft and the Adelson Family Foundation.

So while the price tag for the project has grown from $200 million to $300 million, taxpayers won't be stuck with the tab.

The arrangement no doubt frosts the perennial Trump opposition, but when you think of how many other projects have burned time and billions, there may be something to be said for the Trump route.

I think about the California High-Speed Rail project, which was supposed to link Los Angeles to the Bay Area. In 2008, Californians approved a bond measure to fund $33 billion for a project expected to be done by 2020. Five years after that due date, there is no train to catch.

Do I share Trump's taste for glitter and gilt? No. But the next president will be free to rebuild and redecorate the White House as he or she sees fit. Elections have consequences. And change is inevitable.

The Review-Journal is owned by the Adelson family. Contact Review-Journal Washington columnist Debra J. Saunders at dsaunders@reviewjournal.com. Follow @debrajsaunders on X.