Trump Declares Oval Office a National Monument in First Act After Midterm Loss, but Successors Can Redecorate

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Thursday signed a proclamation designating the Oval Office and two neighboring rooms as a national monument, a move he said would protect the spaces from future changes. The proclamation's text, however, leaves future presidents free to redecorate.

The proclamation designates the Oval Office, the Outer Oval Office and the Cabinet Room as a national monument and federal landmark, a move intended to preserve the spaces and prevent future administrations from altering them.

The signing came two days after a major political setback. It was Trump's first official action after his party was swept aside in Tuesday's midterm elections.

'A landmark for the ages'

Trump described the move in sweeping terms during a ceremony in the Oval Office. "It won't be able to be taken down, destroyed, touched or anything else," Trump told reporters.

He said the document would "make them into a landmark for the ages." Trump said the designation would make the rooms "impossible to knock down and change in any meaningful way."

"It will make it impossible for anybody ever to destroy this incredible space," he said.

"We like the Oval Office, and it's a symbol, like the White House itself," Trump said.

The moment also carried political symbolism. As Trump signed the proclamation, a red baseball cap with "VETO" in white letters sat on his desk.

What the proclamation does

Issued under the Antiquities Act, the proclamation gives the Oval Office and adjoining spaces separate recognition as the Oval Office National Monument.

It sets out a process for future changes. The proclamation directs the Interior Department, through the National Park Service, to develop a management plan focused on preserving the rooms' structural and significant architectural features, and requires documentation, review and consideration of alternatives before any action that would substantially alter or demolish the spaces.

Limits of the order

Despite Trump's description, the document contains important limits. The proclamation says nothing in it will "restrict the President's authority to redecorate the monument, select furnishings," or make ordinary operational and security modifications.

The action does not prevent future presidents from restyling the office, nor does it prevent a successor from rolling back the proclamation itself. Trump himself has reversed national monument designations made by his predecessors.

The Washington Post reported that the legal force of the proclamation is unclear and that future presidents could have the authority to overturn it.

Congressional approval claim

Trump also suggested lawmakers would weigh in. He said "no major modification" would take place to the Cabinet Room or Oval Office "without the approval of Congress." He said the administration would declare it a national monument and "send it over to Congress, have it ratified."

That requirement does not appear in the proclamation's final text.

Trump acknowledged some flexibility for his successors. Asked whether a future president could remove the gold accents he has hung in the Oval Office, Trump indicated that a future leader could, but "very carefully."

A gilded makeover

Trump has significantly changed the room's appearance during his second term. In the Oval Office alone, he has added gold vermeil figurines on the mantle and medallions on the fireplace, gold eagles on the side tables, gilded Rococo mirrors on the doors and small gold cherubs shipped in from Mar-a-Lago above the doorways.

The order comes amid larger construction at the White House. That includes Trump's demolition of the East Wing to make room for a $600 million ballroom.

Historical background

The Oval Office was first created in 1909 during the administration of President William Howard Taft, and the White House and its grounds already hold National Historic Landmark status.

Political backdrop

The proclamation arrives as Washington's balance of power shifts. Democrats are gearing up for new scrutiny of Trump after winning control of Congress.

Trump did not elaborate on precisely what he hoped to prevent but suggested that the Oval Office might face some threat in the future.

Supporters of the move describe it as an effort to safeguard an iconic symbol of the presidency. Critics have questioned whether a proclamation that preserves the right to redecorate does much beyond signaling the president's attachment to his redesign.