How Trump is remaking Washington DC in his own image

Washington DC, the symbolic heart of the United States, is undergoing a profound transformation, courtesy of President Donald Trump’s extensive makeover of the nation’s capital. As the country marks its 250th year, visitors will find a city reshaped by the president’s continuing fixation with the District of Columbia since his return to office 17 months ago.

Trump has left an indelible mark, slapping his image and name on buildings, altering others, and initiating massive construction projects, alongside the deployment of armed military personnel. While traditional tourist sights remain, a critical eye reveals the president’s pervasive efforts to remake the capital.

Our journey through this changing Washington begins at Union Station and Metro Center, the city’s main transit hubs. Beyond their distinct Greco-Roman and Brutalist architectures, one immediately notices the ongoing, indefinite deployment of armed National Guard troops. Members from the district and several states have been present since August 2025, under an emergency order issued by Trump to combat crime.

Members of the National Guard walking in the lobby of Union Station in WashingtonAP Photo/Matt Rourke

Portrayed by the president as a lifeline for the city, these troops are expected to number 5,000 this summer and remain for most, if not all, of 2026. While military deployments have occurred before – during the Civil War, after Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1968 assassination, and following the 6 January 2021 Capitol riot – the sight of Guardsmen at street corners and metro stations has become an increasingly normalised part of the city’s scenery, with no clear end in sight.

Exiting Union Station and turning down Pennsylvania Avenue, one encounters a building now synonymous with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), the Trump administration’s initiative to shrink the federal government. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) was the first major federal agency targeted by then-DOGE leader Elon Musk.

Cost-cutting measures led to the termination of tens of thousands of workers, effectively cutting some \$60 billion in funding by eliminating 90 per cent of foreign aid contracts. After workers cleared their desks in February 2025, the USAID offices were repurposed. The agency’s shuttering also contributed to a massive increase in unemployment in the region, where about one-fifth of the workforce resides, leaving many to question what was truly saved.

Walking south towards Constitution Avenue and the National Mall, banners bearing Trump’s image adorn the facades of several government buildings – an uncommon practice for a sitting American president. At the Department of the Interior, his image shares billing with George Washington on banners proclaiming "America’s First" and "America First."

A mile away, Trump’s face glowers from the storied Department of Justice building, a striking symbol of his efforts to exert power over the law enforcement agency that once investigated him, and a physical display of the erosion of the department’s traditional independence from White House control.

A banner featuring an image of President Donald Trump hangs on the Department of Justice in WashingtonAP Photo/ Matt Rourke

Westward, towards the Lincoln Memorial, lies the recently repainted Reflecting Pool. Once a site of historic marches and protests, its new "American flag blue" hue, ordered by Trump who called the area "filthy," symbolises his drive to change Washington. A local non-profit attempted to block the move, arguing it undermined the somber tone of the area near the Lincoln, Vietnam, and Korean War memorials. Since the makeover, the pool has been plagued with issues, including runaway algae, dead ducks, and a torn lining, which authorities attribute partly to vandalism.

A walk over the Memorial Bridge across the Potomac River leads to the proposed future site of Trump’s 20-storey, gold-adorned triumphal arch. Despite being embroiled in court battles, the arch has received approval from a key federal agency, and survey work has begun. This new construction threatens to disrupt the meticulously planned symbolic sightline between Arlington House, once home to Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee, and the Lincoln Memorial, which symbolised the reunification of a divided nation.

Visible from this site is the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, known for much of this year as the Donald J. Trump and John F. Kennedy Memorial Center. Congress named the venue a living memorial to Kennedy in 1964, explicitly prohibiting its board from naming it after anyone else or placing another name on its exterior.

New signage, The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, is unveiled on the Kennedy CenterAP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin

A court decision eventually stripped the centre of Trump’s name, though a tarp still obscures the change. Trump also added his name to the U.S. Institute of Peace, part of a series of tributes largely unprecedented for a sitting president.

No tour would be complete without 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue – the White House. Here, the East Wing is now a construction site, a "ballroom-in-waiting" as courts and Congress debate its future. The White House claims private donors will cover the $400m cost, but public money, around $1 billion for the entire complex, would be used for security. The proposed building has expanded to a size larger than the rest of the White House, with Trump arguing its necessity for security, an assertion amplified after the attack on the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner in April. Not viewable on the tour is the area formerly known as the Rose Garden, planted by then-first lady Jackie Kennedy, which has been paved over into a patio.

Directly north, across Pennsylvania Avenue, is the area formerly known as Black Lives Matter Plaza. During Trump’s first term, a more defiant Democratic Mayor Muriel Bowser ordered the painting and naming of the area in remembrance of George Floyd. BLM Plaza became a magnet for years of political activism. However, the plaza was removed in March 2025 at Bowser’s direction, spurred by congressional threats to withhold city funding, acknowledging a major shift in tone under Trump.