Story perspectives

Trump Pushes Corinthian Column Swap, Experts Warn Legal Overreach

5/26/2026

Summary

Story summary

U.S. President Donald Trump examined an Ionic column base at White House entrance on Monday.
Rodney Mims Cook Jr., chair of Trump-appointed Commission of Fine Arts, proposed swapping Ionic for Corinthian columns.
Historic preservation experts, including former Commission member Bruce Redman Becker, said the proposal violates standards.
Courts have said U.S. President Donald Trump’s demolition of the East Wing for a $400 million ballroom and Rose Garden paving exceeded his authority.

History

Historical Context

After Theodore Roosevelt hired architect Charles Follen McKim in 1902, Congress approved over half a million dollars to replace Victorian interiors and add a West Wing, a move later expanded by William Howard Taft in 1909 and rebuilt after Herbert Hoover’s 1929 fire. The 2025 demolition of the East Wing and proposed ballroom has revived the same preservation disputes that began with the 1902 renovation.

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Story summary

U.S. President Donald Trump examined an Ionic column base at White House entrance on Monday.
Rodney Mims Cook Jr., chair of Trump-appointed Commission of Fine Arts, proposed swapping Ionic for Corinthian columns.
Historic preservation experts, including former Commission member Bruce Redman Becker, said the proposal violates standards.
Courts have said U.S. President Donald Trump’s demolition of the East Wing for a $400 million ballroom and Rose Garden paving exceeded his authority.

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