Donald Trump’s White House makeover frenzy has reached one of its most iconic features: the historic West Colonnade.
The walkway, which connects the West Wing to the Executive Residence and dates back to Thomas Jefferson’s presidency, has become the latest casualty in Trump’s round of aggressive renovations.
Photos posted on social media by Jeanine Pirro, the former Fox News host now serving as U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, revealed framed portraits of former presidents George Washington and Jefferson being hung along the colonnade’s previously bare walls.
Sheets of brown paper, cut in similar size to the paintings, suggested more artwork is on the way—but probably not featuring all Trump’s predecessors.
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.
This makeover joins a growing list of dramatic, and controversial, alterations Trump has ordered since returning to the White House for a second term. He has already gilded the Oval Office with Rococo mirrors, gold medallions and eagle figurines, paved over the Rose Garden with a concrete pati and erected oversized flagpoles on the grounds.
A new, $200 million ballroom in the East Wing is also reportedly in the works.
Some critics argue the president is wrecking the building’s historic character.
Democratic strategist Chris D. Jackson, who worked on the Biden campaign, blasted Trump’s White House renovations on X in July.
This is awful. The Rose Garden and Colonnade used to be my favorite parts of the White House—now they look like everything else he touches: stripped down, soulless, and ruined.Here’s hoping the next First Family doesn’t just reverse policy but rips out every bit of this… pic.twitter.com/HN4OXbeydR
— Chris D. Jackson (@ChrisDJackson) July 31, 2025
“This is awful. The Rose Garden and Colonnade used to be my favorite parts of the White House,” he wrote. “Now they look like everything else he touches: stripped down, soulless, and ruined.”
“Oh God. Trump continues his mission to ruin the White House, this time the historic West Colonnade. He acts like he’s never leaving…” the Republicans against Trump X account posted.
White House Communications Director Steven Cheung defended Trump’s upgrades in comments to The New York Times in March.
“The White House has not been given any tender, loving care in many decades, so President Trump is taking necessary steps in order to preserve and restore the greatness and glory of ‘the People’s House’” said Cheung.
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