In a sudden change of plans, Trump to demolish White House East Wing entirely

What did NTHP request regarding White House demolition?

How might the ballroom disrupt White House design?

What other White House changes has Trump proposed?

The White House’s East Wing is history.

A White House spokesperson confirmed to USA TODAY that the “entirety” of the East Wing, which traditionally houses the first lady’s offices, will be undergoing “modernization and renovation” as a new ballroom is built, in a stark reversal of earlier plans.

When the White House first released the plans for the 90,000-square-foot ballroom on July 31, President Donald Trump told reporters that the addition would be “built over on the east side and it will be beautiful.”

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

But plans have changed.

The scope and size of the ballroom project has always been subject to vary as the scope and size of the process developed, the White House official offered as an explanation.

The demolition work began on Oct. 21, and pictures from the site set off a flurry of criticism – the sight of the façade of the East Wing being ripped off angered people, including former first lady Hillary Clinton.

"lt's not his house. It’s your house. And he’s destroying it,” she wrote on X.

The National Trust for Historic Places urged to the administration and the National Park Service to pause demolition until plans for the proposed ballroom “go through the legally required public review processes, including consultation and review by the National Capital Planning Commission and the Commission of Fine Arts,” both of which it said have authority to review new construction at the White House.

Carol Quillen, president and CEO of NTHP, said the 90,000-square-feet of new construction “will overwhelm the White House itself,” which is 55,000 square feet.

“(The addition) may also permanently disrupt the carefully balanced classical design of the White House with its two smaller, and lower, East and West Wings,” wrote Quillen in a letter to NCPC, the National Park Service, and the Commission of Fine Arts.

Trump has embarked on numerous changes in the White House and in Washington, from gold accents in the Oval Office and paving over the Rose Garden lawn to a proposed new arch across from the Lincoln Memorial.