Demolishing the White House East Wing to build a ballroom embodies Trump’s heritage politics
- Written by: R. Grant Gilmore III, Director, Historic Preservation and Community Planning Program, College of Charleston
Demolition in process on the East Wing of the White House, Oct. 23, 2025. AP Photo/Jacquelyn MartinFrom ancient Egypt to Washington, D.C., rulers have long used architecture and associated stories to project power, control memory and shape national identity. As 17th-century French statesman Jean-Baptiste Colbert observed:
“In the absence of...

