President Donald Trump made a surprising rooftop appearance on August 5, 2025, emerging from a door off the State Dining Room and spending about 20 minutes walking above the press briefing room and west colonnade.
When pressed by reporters, he said he was “just taking a little walk” and claimed to be looking for ways to invest more into the White House. Flanked by snipers and bodyguards, Trump shouted to the press and gestured from the roof, even joking about installing missiles.
The moment was so unusual that Fox News cut into regular programming to show it live. White House correspondent Jacqui Heinrich, visibly startled on air, remarked that she had “never seen anything like this in a presidential setting” and described the rooftop stroll as both bizarre and unsettling, underscoring the extraordinary nature of the scene.
That roof visit underscored Trump’s sweeping renovation agenda for the Executive Mansion. The marquee feature is a $200 million, 90,000-square-foot ballroom slated for construction in September 2025. The project, privately funded by Trump and “patriot donors,” will replace much of the East Wing and is expected to be completed before his term ends. Construction is already underway despite a government shutdown, since the financing comes from private sources. The design work is led by McCrery Architects, with Clark Construction and AECOM executing the build.
Meanwhile, inside the White House, Trump has dramatically refashioned several spaces. The Oval Office now features gold embellishments applied to walls, ceilings, door frames, and even carved cherub figures. He has insisted the materials are genuine 24-karat gold, though critics question whether they may instead be gold-painted moldings. The Rose Garden has also been transformed: the lawn was removed and replaced with stone patio slabs in a diamond pattern, echoing the style of his Mar-a-Lago club, and solar in-ground lighting was added. Trump even renamed the space the “Rose Garden Club.”
In late September, a newly updated Palm Room was unveiled. The room, which links the front of the residence to the Rose Garden and the West Wing, was repainted in stark white and fitted with a flashy chandelier and white marble floors—a sharp contrast with its earlier green, plant-filled design. Trump shared a photo of the renovation on his social media, calling it part of a “magnificent” facelift. More recently, he released a video tour of his reimagined White House spaces, highlighting gold wall moldings in the Oval Office and Cabinet Room. He described them as “some of the highest quality 24-karat gold” and said foreign leaders were impressed, dubbing it the “best Oval Office ever.”
Despite the ongoing renovations, Trump’s daily routine continues to draw attention. Public calendars show frequent golf outings—nearly a quarter of his days in office so far have included time at his own courses—mixed with ceremonial appearances, fundraisers, and briefings. He often leaves the White House in golf attire on weekends, traveling to Virginia clubs or Mar-a-Lago. Critics have accused him of prioritizing leisure during moments of political turmoil, while Trump has countered with statements about his stamina and a physician’s note declaring him in excellent health, even boasting that his golf “victories” prove his vitality.
Taken together, the rooftop stroll, interior transformations, garden overhaul, and ballroom construction mark Trump’s most ambitious effort yet to stamp the White House with his personal architectural and aesthetic vision, blending his trademark showmanship with a daily rhythm that continues to blur the lines between politics, spectacle, and leisure.
