Trump Signs Proclamation Declaring Oval Office a National Monument

United States President Donald Trump has signed a proclamation designating the Oval Office and the adjacent Cabinet Room as a national monument, marking his first official action since his party's sweeping losses in Tuesday's midterm elections, which will hand Democrats control of Congress in January.

Trump signed the document on Thursday from behind the president's desk, which was topped with a red "VETO" baseball cap. The designation also covers the Outer Oval Office, and the move is intended to prevent major changes to the spaces, which the president has heavily redesigned during his second term.

"We're making it a national monument, and it will not be allowed to be touched by anybody, destroyed, ripped down by stupid people, in order to build something in a slightly different shape," Trump told reporters at the signing, adding that the proclamation would turn the first-floor West Wing rooms into "a landmark for the ages".

According to the proclamation, the effort aims to preserve the spaces' "historic character, architectural integrity, and association with the Presidency". It directs the interior secretary to manage the monument through the National Park Service and requires "documentation, review, and consideration of alternatives before any action that would substantially alter or demolish the monument".

The measure does not stop future presidents from restyling the Oval Office. Proclamations can be revised or revoked by a successor through new executive action, a strategy Trump himself used to dramatically downsize two major national monuments in Utah during his first term, and again in his second term after former President Joe Biden had fully restored them. The proclamation also explicitly states that it does not restrict the president's authority to redecorate, select furnishings or change the office's decor.

Coming on the heels of his party's defeat, the signing was the president's third event of the week highlighting his pet projects. Those include the demolition of the East Wing to build a contentious, nearly $1bn White House ballroom atop a multistorey underground bunker, and a proposed 76-metre (250ft) triumphal arch along the approach to Arlington National Cemetery. A failed renovation of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool cost more than $14m.

These projects have drawn sharp criticism from opposition lawmakers and many Americans, with public opinion polls signalling voter dissatisfaction with the administration's domestic spending choices and broader economic priorities.

Since returning to office in 2025, Trump, a real estate mogul-turned-politician, has launched numerous construction projects and added personalised touches throughout the White House. In June last year, he installed two towering flagpoles on the North and South Lawns and later paved over the Rose Garden's lawn with a stone patio reminiscent of his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. The South Lawn also hosts a new multimillion-dollar granite helicopter pad meant to protect the grass from the new presidential helicopters.

Inside the building, the Oval Office has received a golden makeover, with gleaming vases, 24-karat gold ceiling trim, burnished wood carvings and heavy gilded frames. In September last year, Trump lined the West Wing Colonnade with a "Presidential Walk of Fame" portrait exhibition featuring controversial gold-lettered plaques containing partisan criticisms of some former presidents, including Barack Obama. His administration has faced several lawsuits alleging the Washington beautification projects were carried out without necessary approval.

Trump did not elaborate on precisely what he hoped to prevent but suggested the Oval Office might face some threat in the future. "If anybody ever decides to come and start knocking down walls, you call me wherever I may be," he said, "and I'll come back here and I'll make sure it never happens."