Between the new White House ballroom, the proposed Arc de Trump, and whatever’s going to happen to the Kennedy Center, President Trump is trying to reimagine the city in his image.
Paul Goldberger, a longtime architecture critic at the New York Times and New Yorker, wrote a blistering essay about the Trump effect on D.C. — even comparing Trump to the Italian Prime Minister Mussolini. And like Mussolini, Trump totally gets the city wrong. Goldberger came on the pod to talk about his essay and the historical parallels he sees.
“[Trump] envisions it as a place of imperial grandeur because he envisions himself more as an emperor than as a democratic president, and he's trying to reshape it to be the seat of an empire,” Goldberger said.
An Imperial Vision
Goldberger said the best cities have a mix of “wonderful accidents and wonderful intention,” both order and chaos, but argues that because Trump’s focus is on himself, his proposed projects will overwhelm the city with little regard for its history or layout.
“ He's missing the importance of history. The idea that the White House is some kind of piece of personal property that he can tinker with during his period of residency…” Goldberger said. “The process we're seeing right now is a joke.”
The East Wing of the White House was demolished in October for President Trump’s planned ballroom. (Eric Lee/Getty Images)
A New White House
The most infamous example is Trump’s proposed 90,000 square-foot ballroom (plus underground military complex) at the East Wing of the White House. Goldberger said the building will overshadow the White House in size and block the vista between the president’s residence and the Capitol — a key element in Pierre L’Enfant’s original designs for Washington.
“ The symbolism is pretty bad there,” Goldberger said. “It's completely saying that imperial grandeur — no pun intended — trumps the people's view.”
Even the original White House structure could be tampered with if Trump swaps its portico columns from the staid ionic style to the more ornate Corinthian style favored by Roman emperors.
Trump’s Monument
The plan for the Arc de Trump — a 250-foot arch at Memorial Circle — shows the president often “confuses size with quality,” Goldberger said. If built, the Arc de Trump would be the main view from the Lincoln Memorial, blocking the line of sight to Arlington Cemetery.
“I worry it would make even the Lincoln Memorial seem trivial,” Goldberger said.
What’s Next
Trump’s plans are not all set — or built — in stone yet. Delays from the permitting processes and lawsuits aiming to completely prevent construction have slowed progress. But this year will still bring massive changes to D.C.’s architectural landscape.
