George Washington's Legacy of the People's House is not Trump's

[allegorical oracle]

The Daily Beast - Opinion by David Gardner
(Italics are mine)

As the latest inhabitant of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, President Donald Trump is enthralled with its history. He comes alive when taking visitors on tours of the old house, even if he has a habit of mixing up his facts. He has put his own gilded stamp on the interior of a mansion that can look bare and cold.

snip

His plans for a 90,000 square foot ballroom in the East Wing are double the size of the current building. With more than triple the capacity of the East Room, currently the largest room in the White House, it’s no great surprise that the plans bear a striking resemblance to Trump’s event hall at Mar-a-Lago.

snip

“They’ve wanted a ballroom at the White House for more than 150 years, but there’s never been a president that was good at ballrooms—really good, in fact,” Trump told reporters when unveiling his plan on Thursday. “When they have big events, you entertain the president of China, the president of any place, and you have big crowds, they’ve always had a tent.”

snip

Time will tell whether he will embrace the approach of an Irishman James Hoban (a farmer's son, and WH architect) when it comes to renovating one of the nation’s great treasures. The true home of the Republic.

Or if he revives the grandiose dream of a Frenchman Pierre L' Enfant (fired by Washington) to transform the White House into a showpiece for the very rich and privileged—and as a memorial to himself.

I’m guessing the latter.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/opinion/opinion-washington-s-legacy-is-the-people-s-house-not-trump-s-versailles/ar-AA1JKoJT

Note: If, for no other reason, visit the link to see a great photo of djt at Turnberry last week.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

1. Fun fact: George Washington never lived in the White House. NT

Last edited Fri Aug 1, 2025, 07:18 PM - Edit history (1)

[allegorical oracle]

3. Yep -- Tom Jefferson was the home's first full time occupant. What I don't get about this whole

"re-do" is that I've known people who lived in "Historical Preservation" homes -- in DC and in Boston. They had to get permission to make any changes to their homes from preservation societies. Sometimes it was a real battle. But then, Truman did a lot of renovations, too. Just question how djt got the okay from The White House Historical Association to make such drastic additions.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

4. Not John Adams, in 1800?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_House

[Retrograde]

5. Truman's renovations were to keep the White House from literally falling to pieces

It was an old building literally built on a swamp, and it wasn't aging well. Supposedly when a piano leg crashed through a floor it was obvious that it was time for some major work. Care was take to preserve as much of the old feel of the building as possible, while bringing it up to 1950s building standards. Truman did add a balcony, which IMHO was a good addition.

[wcmagumba]

2. All his shite will have to be torn out, covered up and replaced with the original design and decor...

including the effing paved over rose garden, what a monstrosity...

https://apnews.com/photo-gallery/trump-rose-garden-paved-over-photo-gallery-732b9521b69c10c12ce448f12e27401c