I was first made aware of this story by our sister site Twitchy, and the more I looked into it, the more I felt like it was a Monty Python skit about byzantine government operations.
Trump wants to clean up the 137-year-old Eisenhower Executive Office Building – not one of the prettier or more impressive buildings in The Swamp, I can tell you – but of course, some crazed historical group immediately filed suit to stop him.
At this rate, administration officials will need to get judicial approval just to use the bathroom.
The Trump team was forced to agree not to take any steps to beautify the building for the rest of the year while court proceedings commence. Dirt and grime are historical to some folks, evidently:
The sudden declaration from GSA [General Services Administration] comes after the DC Preservation League and Cultural Heritage Partners, a law firm focused on historic preservation, filed a complaint on Friday against the Trump administration after President Donald Trump speculated about painting the building next to the White House stark white.
During a Fox News interview last week, Trump said that the Eisenhower Building “was always considered an ugly building” and lamented its historic gray color — the exterior facade is mostly composed of polished granite, slate, and ornate cast-iron trim — saying that “gray is for funerals.”
Think about this:
— 🇺🇸 Mike Davis 🇺🇸 (@mrddmia) November 19, 2025
The President of the United States and his staff must get the permission of a federal judge before repainting or power-washing a White House staff building??
And these federal judges, particularly in DC, wonder why the American people increasingly loathe them. https://t.co/Vks4RGpvqN
JUDGES GONE WILD: Missouri Sen. Eric Schmitt Demands D.C. Appeals Judge Suspend Rogue Jurist James Boasberg ASAP
Sean Duffy Condemns Court's Ruling on Illegal Immigrant CDLs, Vows 'Not to 'Take This Lying Down'
As Brett T. at Twitchy opines, “Once again, we have to ask why we had an election a year ago to pick a president when judges can simply prevent him from doing anything they don't approve of?” That certainly seems to be the order of the day.
White House spokesman Davis Ingle summed it up in a statement:
President Trump is making the White House beautiful and giving it the glory it deserves. Only people with a severe case of Trump Derangement Syndrome would find a problem with that.
Unbelievably, leftists saw this support for grime as a victory:
“The government’s temporary freeze of the president’s plans marks a significant step forward,” Greg Werkheiser, founding partner of Cultural Heritage Partners, said in a statement. “The court battle lies ahead, and we are fully conscious of just how much is at stake for this wonderful building and for the rest of America’s treasures protected under law.”
We’ve seen how the progressives have absolutely freaked out over Trump’s privately-funded White House ballroom project, even as Fed chair Jerome Powell throws billions at renovations for the Reserve’s buildings.
See More: Trump Mocks Jerome Powell With Hilarious Criticism of the Fed and Their Bank-Busting Renovations
But as you can see from progressive-run cities nationwide, from San Francisco to Los Angeles to Chicago, they like it dirty — and they’ll keep on fighting to keep it that way.
Historical, my arse. Just because it’s venerable doesn’t mean it’s sacred. It’s a dirty old ugly building in serious need of a revamp. Hopefully, this is just a temporary delay.
I can't leave you without this:
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