Trump installs partisan plaques for past presidents at White House

Washington — A walkway in the White House's West Wing that President Trump has dubbed the "Presidential Walk of Fame" now features partisan plaques installed under the portraits of his predecessors.

From "Sleepy Joe" Biden references to painting Republican icon Ronald Reagan as a fan of a young Mr. Trump, the plaques include language written in Trumpian style. The installation is the president's latest move to shape the White House in his image, an effort that has spanned from adding gilded decor in the Oval Office to razing the East Wing in preparation for a massive ballroom addition.

An introductory plaque tells passersby that the Presidential Walk of Fame was "conceived, built, and dedicated by President Donald J. Trump as a tribute to past Presidents, good, bad, and somewhere in the middle."

Biden's plaque repeats a false claim that the 46th president, a Democrat, took office "as a result of the most corrupt election ever," when, in fact, he defeated Mr. Trump in 2020 in both the popular vote and the Electoral College. Biden is also described as "by far, the worst president in American history."

Another Democrat, Barack Obama, the nation's first Black president and Mr. Trump's first presidential predecessor, is labeled "one of the most divisive political figures in American history."

The plaque below former President George W. Bush's portrait appears to approve of the Republican's creation of the Department of Homeland Security but decries that he "started wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, both of which should not have happened."

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that the texts are "eloquently written descriptions of each president" and that "many were written directly by the president himself."

Biden had no comment on his plaque. There were no immediate responses to emails sent to aides for Obama and several other former presidents.

Mr. Trump in September refashioned the colonnade that runs from the West Wing to the White House residence with gilded portraits of all former presidents, except for Biden. For him, Mr. Trump instead chose a picture of an autopen, reflecting his contention that Biden was not up to the job.

The walkway is the president's usual entrance to the Oval Office, meaning Mr. Trump can easily take his guests — foreign dignitaries included — past the exhibit with his framing of his predecessors.

"The Presidential Walk of Fame will long live as a testament and tribute to the Greatness of America," the introductory plaque declares.

As Mr. Trump makes his mark on the White House grounds, the Trump administration is facing a lawsuit from the National Trust for Historic Preservation over the demolition of the East Wing and plans for the new ballroom. The Trump administration insists it didn't need approvals for the demolition.

U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon on Tuesday denied a motion by the preservation group that would have temporarily blocked construction of the new ballroom, but he set out some requirements for the Trump administration moving forward.

The president also undertook a major overhaul of the South Lawn, paving over a former grassy area with concrete to easier facilitate tables and chairs.

The plaques of past presidents were revealed to the press as the president prepared to give a year-end address Wednesday to tout his accomplishments in his first 11 months in office and lay out plans for the next three years.

The latest CBS News/YouGov poll from November shows Mr. Trump has a 40% approval rating overall, while 36% of adults surveyed approved of his handling of the economy.

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