Trump is paving over the Rose Garden and people are outraged

Donald Trump's Rose Garden renovation plans are well underway after bulldozers were pictured ripping up the grass at the White House, sparking outcry on social media.

As per Trump's instruction, the grass will be paved over, and flagpoles are set to be installed on the north and south lawns in what is being described as a Mar-a-Lago-style patio.

Employees of the National Park Service, which maintains the White House grounds, started the work on Monday, according to a White House official, The Associated Press reported.

Renovation work continues in the Rose Garden at the White House on June 18, 2025 in Washington, DC. U.S. President Donald Trump observed the installation of a new flag pole on the South Lawn earlier in the day. Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

The anonymous official added that the project should be completed in around two months (the first half of August).

What has Trump said?

Trump has spoken about the Rose Garden transformation and explained the design changes to America's most famous garden.

"We're putting up a beautiful, almost 100-foot-tall American flag on this side, and another one on the other side — top-of-the-line, paid for by Trump," he said, as per the White House.

"They’ve needed flag poles for 200 years,” he told reporters. “It was something I’ve often said, ‘they don’t have a flag pole.’”

During a White House tour in March, Trump told Fox News in a segment of The Laura Ingraham Show that the grass "just doesn't work."

“What was happening is, it’s supposed to have events. Every event you have, it’s soaking wet,” Trump said. “People can’t—and the women with the high heels, it’s just too much.”

He added, “The grass just, it doesn’t work,” the president added. “We use it for press conferences and it doesn’t work because the people fall into the wet grass.”

“I think it’s gonna be more beautiful. It’s a great place," and noted the rest of the garden will remain the same.

How has social media reacted?

The renovations have been widely condemned on social media, where users have expressed their outrage at Trump and vented about the president turning the Rose Garden into his Florida resort, Mar-a-Lago.

"We’ve got money to bulldoze the White House Rose Garden and turn it into a Mar-a-Lago-style patio, but we can’t pay for cancer research for kids or make sure veterans aren’t living off food stamps," said Mike Nellis, Democratic strategist and former Senior Advisor to Kamala Harris.

He continued, "I love how people keep pointing out that private donations paid for it—not the government. I don’t give a s***. The issue is this administration’s priorities.

"Trump thinks it’s fine to bulldoze the Rose Garden to build a patio so he can relax outside, while doing nothing to improve your life. That’s the criticism. He’s enriching himself, screwing everyone else, and not lifting a goddamn finger to help you. That’s the problem."

Another person wrote, "This is infuriating but it’s also so f***ing depressing. He’s turning the Rose Garden into Mar-a-f***ing-Lago."

"Melania ruined Jackie's beloved rose garden. Now Donnie has paved it over. No class, no taste, no culture," a third person posted.

A fourth person commented: "Trump just destroyed the Rose Garden by paving over it."

The History of the Rose Garden

There are two rose gardens in the White House - the Rose Garden along the West Wing and the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden located south of the East Terrace Colonnade.

Former First Lady Edith Roosevelt first created the rose gardens in 1903, and then in the 1960s, the two gardens were redesigned for the Kennedys.

The lawn that we're all familiar with (the one Trump is paving) was conceived by President John F. Kennedy, along with Rose Garden designer Rachel Lambert Mellon, to hold more space for official gatherings.

Previous controversies

This isn't the first time Trump has caused controversy with his gardening decisions; just last month, there was criticism over a large magnolia tree that was cut down to replace a smaller tree. It had been planted outside the Oval Office window to commemorate John F. Kennedy

Then, during Trump's first time in office, renovations in both the Rose Garden and the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden controversially took place in 2020 by First Lady Melania Trump, which saw the removal of some trees and colourful flowers.

It later led to an online petition urging the then First Lady Jill Biden to restore the Rose Garden at the White House to its "former glory," BBC reported at the time.

Are there more White House renovation plans?

Yes, Trump has shared plans to build a $100 million ballroom, similar to his private Mar-A-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida.

"Just inspected the site of the new Ballroom that will be built, compliments of a man known as Donald J. Trump, at the White House," he began in a post on Truth Social earlier this month.

"For 150 years, Presidents, and many others, have wanted a beautiful Ballroom, but it never got built because nobody previously had any knowledge or experience in doing such things — But I do, like maybe nobody else, and it will go up quickly, and be a wonderful addition, very much in keeping with the magnificent White House itself.

He added, "These are the 'fun' projects I do while thinking about the World Economy, the United States, China, Russia, and lots of other Countries, places, and events. It will all be good, maybe even GREAT, depending on who is the President of the U.S.A.!"

Elsewhere, Trump's comments about Iran from 2011 have aged like milk, and another Trump loyalist slammed Fox News over 'pure propaganda' on Iran

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