The world’s most petty commander in chief is as soon as once more marking his territory—this time by banning the official portraits of his predecessors from the White Home entryway.
In response to CNN, President Donald Trump just lately ordered the relocation of portraits of former Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush, and George H.W. Bush. Obama’s photorealistic Robert McCurdy portray now hangs on the prime of the Grand Staircase—out of attain of the 1000’s of tourists who tour the White Home every year.
The Bush portraits, sources mentioned, had been moved to the identical secluded space.
Former President Barack Obama’s portray by Robert McCurdy
It’s a pointy break from many years of White Home protocol, which historically assigns the newest president’s prime placement within the Govt Mansion’s public areas. CNN acquired a photograph exhibiting the brand new location, an space off-limits and primarily for the primary household, the Secret Service, and a small cadre of workers. The prime actual property—seen to diplomats, dignitaries, and normal guests alike—has lengthy been a bipartisan courtesy, a symbolic handoff from one presidency to the following.
Trump’s motives are obvious, although. He’s held a longstanding grudge in opposition to Obama, whose portrait had already been moved as soon as in April, changed with a portray of Trump surviving an assassination try in Butler, Pennsylvania. He might also be reserving area for a future jab at former President Joe Biden, whose official portrait isn’t completed but.
This petty conduct matches a broader development. Since returning to energy in January, Trump has handled the White Home like an extension of his gaudy Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, changing historic magnificence with gold-plated extra. He paved over the Rose Backyard’s grassy garden with concrete, lined it with striped umbrellas and deck tables, and is pushing a $200 million ballroom undertaking modeled after the resort.
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Inside, the Oval Workplace has been reworked with gilded accents, golden eagle statues, cherub collectible figurines, and triple the standard variety of work. But practically half of Individuals (47%) disapprove of the renovations, in accordance with a YouGov ballot performed on Aug. 7, whereas solely 31% approve.
Trump’s willingness to interrupt custom isn’t restricted to décor. His Justice Division, led by loyalist Legal professional Basic Pam Bondi, has been used in opposition to political enemies, from issuing subpoenas to New York Legal professional Basic Letitia James to focusing on universities beneath the guise of eradicating antisemitism.
He’s additionally moved to strip safety clearances from officers he feels have crossed him—together with former Secretary of State Antony Blinken and former nationwide safety adviser Jake Sullivan—reusing a tactic he first utilized in 2018 in opposition to ex-CIA Director John Brennan. Again then, the White Home claimed Brennan’s “erratic” conduct justified the transfer, however critics mentioned it was plain political revenge.
The portrait snub additionally comes amid renewed tensions with the Obama administration. Trump just lately accused the previous president and his staff of treason in 2016—costs Obama’s workplace dismissed as “bizarre,” “ridiculous,” and “a weak attempt at distraction.”
The Bush household additionally has a fraught historical past with Trump. George H.W. Bush as soon as known as him a “blowhard” and voted for Hillary Clinton. George W. Bush, in the meantime, reportedly described Trump’s 2017 inauguration as “some weird shit” and publicly sided with Obama on some points, even after attending Trump’s 2025 inauguration however skipping the luncheon.
This isn’t the primary time Trump has banished portraits of political rivals. Throughout his first time period, he changed the presidential portraits of Invoice Clinton and George W. Bush within the Grand Lobby with these of William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt.
However the formal custom of presidential portraits, privately funded by the nonprofit White Home Historic Affiliation, started beneath First Girl Jacqueline Kennedy within the early Nineteen Sixties. For many years, the revealing ceremonies and their show had been one of many few White Home customs that reliably crossed occasion strains.
Now, these traditions are gone, identical to the Obama and Bush portraits: out of sight and behind closed doorways.
