Trump set to demolish White House East Wing after promising not to touch it – National

The East Wing of the White House will be entirely demolished, the Trump administration confirmed on Wednesday, months after the president promised the building’s facade would remain untouched.

A White House official told NBC News that the “entirety” of the East Wing, usually reserved as a base for the first lady, would be “modernized and rebuilt” in an ongoing process with no clear timeline.

“The scope and the size of the ballroom project have always been subject to vary as the process develops,” the representative told the outlet.

Recent developments contradict Trump’s July comments about the construction project.

“It won’t interfere with the current building,” he said. “It’ll be near it, but not touching it, and pays total respect to the existing building, which I’m the biggest fan of.”

Dramatic photos of the demolition showed construction equipment tearing into the East Wing façade and windows, with other building parts scattered on the ground.

Some reporters watched from a park near the Treasury Department, next to the East Wing.

The White House has moved ahead with the massive construction project despite not yet receiving sign-off from the National Capital Planning Commission, which approves construction work and major renovations to government buildings in the Washington area.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation, an agency charged with preserving historic buildings, wrote in a letter to the administration on Tuesday that construction “will overwhelm the White House itself.”

“We respectfully urge the Administration and the National Park Service to pause demolition until plans for the proposed ballroom go through the legally required public review processes,” it said.

Demolition began on Monday and will be fully completed by the weekend, reported the BBC.

In a statement Wednesday, the Trump administration said the ballroom was “a bold, necessary addition that echoes the storied history of improvements and additions from commanders-in-chief to keep the executive residence as a beacon of American excellence.”

On Tuesday, late-night host Stephen Colbert said the demolition was “deeply unsettling.”

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“We’re just nine months into Trump’s term, and he’s already going ‘Hulk smash’ on the White House. Last time, it took at least four years to bring a demo crew to the Capitol,” he added, referring to Jan. 6, 2021.

The East Wing was initially built in 1902 and has been renovated over the years, with a second storey added in 1942 by then-president Franklin D. Roosevelt, according to the White House.

Trump joins a long line of presidents who have made structural changes to the White House, including Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton.

The ballroom will be the most significant structural change to the Executive Mansion since the addition in 1948 of the Truman Balcony overlooking the South Lawn, even dwarfing the residence itself.

It was initially supposed to span 90,000 square feet, cost US$200 million and hold up to 650 seats, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in July.

On Wednesday, Trump said the project cost had ballooned to $300 million, a cost increase of 50 per cent.

He says he and private donors are paying for the ballroom, but he has not released full financing details.

— With files from The Associated Press and Reuters.

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