Kathrine Frich
The sweeping property changes extend far beyond the gold wallpaper.
Whenever a new leader moves into a famous building, they usually want to leave a personal mark.
A fresh coat of paint often does the trick. But a recent wave of massive building projects is drawing fierce criticism from a very familiar political rival.
Echoes of a dictator
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton took aim at President Donald Trump during a Friday appearance on Kara Swisher’s podcast. Her comments targeted his sweeping property renovations.
She compared his interior design choices to the lavish homes of a notorious Iraqi leader, a vivid memory she recalled from her time visiting Baghdad as a busy senator.
“I had meetings in some of his palaces, and they were quite reminiscent of what we are seeing in our own White House. It’s just insane,” Clinton said, according to HuffPost.
Inside the Oval Office, the president has heavily favored shiny metallic finishes. Clinton feels this reveals a deeper character flaw.
Focus on the walls
“It’s sad that it’s so tackyed up,” she noted.
She described the dramatic changes as a direct reflection of his deep need to feel important. This includes placing gold decorations across the historic room.
Clinton argued that these purely decorative projects pull his attention away from global threats like artificial intelligence. She painted a bleak picture of a distracted leader. He seems obsessed with aesthetics over duty.
“This is a man who can’t concentrate. This is a man whose mind apparently goes to, ‘Where can I add more gold?’ instead of ‘How do I get out of Iran without looking like the loser that I am?’” she said.
Ponds and giant arches
The sweeping property changes extend far beyond the gold wallpaper. The administration recently rushed to fix the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, and they even proposed building a giant triumphal arch.
The president blamed vandals for the failing pool surface. However, his own Justice Department admitted the hired contractor simply did a bad job.
Clinton found humor in the bizarre situation.
“Maybe we should be happy he’s messing around with the Reflecting Pool,” she told the podcast. That distraction, she suggested, is far better than him starting a brand new war on the other side of the world.
Sources: HuffPost, Kara Swisher podcast
