Story perspectives

Trump Inspects White House Columns, Adds Repair to $1.2 B Agenda

7/11/2026

Summary

Story summary

U.S. President Donald Trump added the White House North Portico column restoration to a $1.2 billion construction agenda covering 18 major Washington, D.C., projects.
Scaffolding on the portico is hidden behind a drape printed with the historic columns.
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said the work is stone repair and praised Trump’s attention to detail.
Trump inspected the columns for six minutes as his motorcade returned from Arlington Cemetery on Memorial Day.

History

Historical Context

In 1901 Theodore Roosevelt assumed the presidency after McKinley’s assassination and immediately ordered a 1902 White House overhaul. Working with his wife Edith and architect Charles Follen McKim, the project replaced Victorian interiors, built the new West Wing, and spent $10,000 on neoclassical furnishings between June 20 and September 29. That presidential-driven preservation model still guides modern restoration efforts.

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Story summary

U.S. President Donald Trump added the White House North Portico column restoration to a $1.2 billion construction agenda covering 18 major Washington, D.C., projects.
Scaffolding on the portico is hidden behind a drape printed with the historic columns.
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said the work is stone repair and praised Trump’s attention to detail.
Trump inspected the columns for six minutes as his motorcade returned from Arlington Cemetery on Memorial Day.

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