As the demolition of the White House’s East Wing progresses to make way for a lavish new ballroom, public attention has turned to the one person whose opinion has remained notably absent from the conversation: First Lady Melania Trump. While President Donald Trump has been vocal about his ambitious $300 million project, his wife has maintained a public silence, leading to widespread speculation about her true feelings. Now, reports from within the administration suggest that behind closed doors, the First Lady has expressed distinct reservations about the extensive teardown.
The East Wing was not just another part of the White House for Melania Trump; it was her professional domain. The space housed the Office of the First Lady, a workspace utilized by her predecessors for decades. The demolition also encompassed the East Colonnade and the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden, areas where the First Lady had personally left her mark. In 2018, she oversaw the planting of 40 blood-red trees in the Colonnade as a tribute to fallen military members, a project that has now been cleared away.
According to a report from the Wall Street Journal, which cited administration officials, Melania Trump has privately conveyed to associates that she is distancing herself from the project. Her reported stance is that she has “nothing to do with it because it isn’t hers.” This sentiment aligns with observations about her increasingly diminished role within the current administration. Reports indicate she has appointed only five full-time staff members for her second term, all of whom have been relocated to other parts of the White House following the demolition.
The situation has not gone unnoticed by those familiar with the traditions of the First Lady’s office. Kate Andersen Brower, author of the book “First Women,” commented to CNN that “watching the demolition is the physical embodiment of watching the first lady’s role become smaller and smaller.” She added that Melania Trump, like her husband, appears unconcerned with “historic precedent.” This physical and symbolic reshaping of the White House underscores a broader transformation of the First Lady’s role, one defined not by public advocacy but by a deliberate and quiet separation from her husband’s most controversial projects.
