Rose Garden

Oct. 22 (UPI) — The East Wing of the White House is undergoing a more extensive renovation than initially announced during the $250 million ballroom-construction project.

President Donald Trump in July said the 90,000-square-foot ballroom construction would not affect the East Wing, but a White House spokesperson confirmed the entire East Wing is being “modernized,” ABC News reported on Wednesday.

A 7-foot-tall fence was placed around the East Wing that blocked views of the demolition and eventual construction on Wednesday.

Officials for the Washington-based National Trust for Historic Preservation on Tuesday asked for the demolition to stop in an open letter to the Commission of Fine Arts, the National Capital Planning Commission and the National Park Service, according to USA Today.

“We respectfully urge the administration and the National Park Service to pause demolition until plans for the proposed ballroom go through the legally required public review processes,” the letter said.

The organization’s leaders want a project consultation and review by the National Capital Planning Commission and the Commission of Fine Arts, “both of which have authority to review new construction and the White House and to invite comments from the American people,” the letter said.

A White House official on Wednesday told CBS News the ballroom’s plans will be submitted to the NCPC “at the appropriate time and hoping to do so soon.”

Those whose offices are subject to the renovation have relocated to the nearby Eisenhower Executive Office Building.

White House officials on Wednesday called the project a “transformative addition that will significantly increase the White House’s capacity to host major functions honoring world leaders, foreign nations and other dignitaries.”

Workers operating bulldozers on Monday began demolishing much of the East Wing, which houses the office of the first lady, a military office and other facilities.

Private donors are funding the reconstruction project, which includes strengthening the East Wing, and many attended a White House dinner on Thursday.

The East Wing ballroom project is the latest White House improvement planned by the president.

Trump earlier this year paid to install two flagpoles on the White House lawn and had part of the Rose Garden lawn covered with stone to support outdoor events.

Other presidents, likewise, have made changes to the White House and its East Wing.

President Theodore Roosevelt authorized the East Wing’s construction in 1902, which President Franklin Roosevelt rebuilt and expanded in 1942, among other renovation projects done by other presidents.

President Harry Truman also oversaw a complete reconstruction and modernization of the White House interior from 1948 to 1952 due to the building’s extensive state of disrepair.

Sept. 4 (UPI) — Several leaders from the tech sector will travel to the White House on Thursday for the fist event in the newly renovated Rose Garden.

Guests expected to attend include Apple CEO Tim Cook, Microsoft founder Bill Gates Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg and OpenAI founder Sam Altman, among more than two dozen other prominent tech and business guests.

Venture capitalist David Sacks, who has served as the White House czar on AI and cryptocurrency, will also be in attendance.

According to a press release, First Lady Melania Trump will host a meeting of the White House Task Force on Artificial Intelligence Education, at which she will speak, alongside Task Force members and leaders from the private AI technology sphere.

President Donald Trump will then lead an event in the Rose Garden with the guests, which will be the first such happening there since it was renovated under the direction of the Trumps.

“The Rose Garden Club at the White House is the hottest place to be in Washington, or perhaps the world,” White House spokesperson Davis Ingle said in a statement to The Hill.

“The president looks forward to welcoming top business, political, and tech leaders for this dinner and the many dinners to come on the new, beautiful Rose Garden patio,” he added.

Those in attendance will see changes to the Rose Garden such as pavement over the former grassy space, with umbrella-shaded tables set in similar fashion to patio arrangements found at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago property in Florida.

One top tech leader not on the guest list is Tesla CEO and SpaceX founder Elon Musk, who served as an advisor to Trump and the head of the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.

Trump and Musk famously feuded shortly after Musk left working with the government.

Aug. 29 (UPI) — An 11-member appeals court on Friday struck down most of President Donald Trump‘s tariffs on foreign goods, declaring they are illegal.

The court held off mandating its decision because of a possible appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Trump, in a post on Truth Social, declared: “The United States of America will win in the end.”

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled that Trump does not have the power to invoke the expansive tariffs on most U.S. trade partners, including a baseline 10% and much higher for nations the president called the “worst offenders.”

The 127-page opinion vacated the lower court’s injunction, blocking the tariffs altogether and directing the court to re-evaluate whether universal relief is appropriate. The chief judge is Kimberly Moore, who was appointed by President George W. Bush.

The ruling doesn’t affect tariffs imposed under other laws, such as the Section 232 tariffs on steel, aluminum and autos.

Tariffs are paid by the importing company at the U.S. ports of entry. The additional cost is often passed on to retailers and, in turn, means higher prices paid by consumers.

In July, the Department of the Treasury brought in more than $29 billion in “customs and excise taxes,” which is mostly from tariffs.

Judges agreed with the three-member Court of International Trade ruling on May 28 that set aside five executive orders that “imposed tariffs of unlimited duration on nearly all goods from nearly every country in the world.” The New York-based court, in a 49-page opinion, said the International Emergency Economic Powers Act does not give the president the “unlimited” power to levy across-the-board tariffs.

The judges’ decision was based on two cases brought by a group of small businesses and 12 Democratic state attorneys general.

They held that “the tariffs were not authorized by the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. Because we agree that IEEPA’s grant of presidential authority to ‘regulate’ imports does not authorize the tariffs imposed by the Executive Orders, we affirm.”

Four judges dissented.

“We agree with the majority’s decision on jurisdiction and standing and on the need for reconsideration of the remedy if the tariffs are unlawful,” Richard Tranto, who was appointed by President Barack Obama, wrote. “But we disagree with the majority’s conclusion on the issue of the tariffs’ legality. We conclude that plaintiffs have not justified summary judgment in their favor on either statutory or constitutional grounds.”

Trump quickly responded on Truth Social: “ALL TARIFFS ARE STILL IN EFFECT! Today a Highly Partisan Appeals Court incorrectly said that our Tariffs should be removed, but they know the United States of America will win in the end. If these Tariffs ever went away, it would be a total disaster for the Country. It would make us financially weak, and we have to be strong.”

He added: “At the start of this Labor Day weekend, we should all remember that TARIFFS are the best tool to help our Workers, and support Companies that produce great MADE IN AMERICA products.”

The ruling took aim on Trump’s authority.

“This case involves the extent of the President’s authority under IEEPA to ‘regulate’ importation in response to a national emergency declared by the President,” the judges wrote. “For many years, Congress has carefully constructed tariff schedules which provide for, in great detail, the tariffs to be imposed on particular goods. Since taking office, President Donald J. Trump has declared several national emergencies.”

They said Trump has departed from the “established tariff schedules and imposed varying tariffs of unlimited duration on imports of nearly all goods from nearly every country with which the United States conducts trade.”

In a separate opinion, the judges paused the ruling from taking effect through Oct. 19 to allow the Trump administration the opportunity to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Trump declared April 2 as “Liberation Day” during a “Make America Wealthy Again” event in the Rose Garden of the White House. The highest tariffs of 50% were placed on sparsely populated Lesotho, France’s Saint Pierre and Miquelon islands. Other countries facing some of the highest tariffs were Cambodia (49%), Laos (48%), Madagascar (47%), Vietnam (46%), and Myanmar (44%).

One week later with U.S. stocks and the bond market reeling, Trump instituted a 90-day pause on all reciprocal tariffs except on China. The 10% baseline that went into effect remained.

Nations then negotiated trade deals, including 15% reciprocal tariffs on European Union nations. Britain, which is not part of the EU, has a 10% tariff on most goods.

A 50% on goods from India took effect on Wednesday.

On July 9, Trump imposed a total 50% tariff in Brazil because of what he called the “disgrace” of how former President Jair Bolsonaro has been treated and an “unfair trade relationship.”

Tariffs are 15% on Japan and South Korea, with 20% on Vietnam, 19% on Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia.

Regarding China, a pause was extended on Aug. 11 for 90 days. Trump had China with tariffs as high as 145%, while China threatened retaliatory tariffs of 125%. During the initial 90-day truce, the United States reduced its China tariffs to 30%, with China dropping its tariffs on U.S. goods to 10%.

China and Mexico have been hit with 25% tariffs.

South Africa was hit with a 30% duty.

Aug. 1 (UPI) — On Friday, White House visitors in Washington, D.C., could better see the newly repaved Rose Garden.

President Donald Trump has said the area needs a hard surface because press events and other occasions in the garden often can’t accommodate all the visitors. He also has said that he wanted the Rose Garden to rival the gardens he has visited in Europe.

It’s not the only structural changes implemented by Trump at the White House.

In June, Trump had two flagpoles installed at the White House and paid for the project himself.

And this past month, the White House also announced that a ballroom would be built adjacent to the White House. Trump and other “patriot donors” have agreed to cover the cost to build it, the president said. That project is scheduled to begin next month.

See the UPI photos above for a look at how the White House gardens have changed over the years and through different presidencies.