The grotesque metaphor of Trump tearing apart the figurative seat of American democracy
The horrifyingly haphazard manner in which he had the East Wing demolished, with no respect shown to history or the historic structure, is the poisonous icing on a rotting cake.
By Shalise Manza Young
For all the grotesque, lawless, self-aggrandizing actions Donald Trump has taken since his second inauguration—and the list is incredibly long—the images that came out of Washington D.C., Monday strain credulity.
The East Wing of the White House had been ripped open by a hulking dark gray excavator, desecrating the most famous house in the United States and possibly the world so that Trump can build a massive, gaudy ballroom that will serve as a temple to his vainglory and insatiable need for validation.
As if the metaphor of Trump tearing apart the figurative seat of American democracy wasn’t on the nose enough for what we’re enduring, the fact that it was done in a horrifyingly haphazard manner, with no respect shown to the historic structure, is the poisonous icing on a rotting cake.
Cables and wires hanging down the sides of the walls. Windows dangling. Part of the roof buckled. A massive section blown open, as though Wile E. Coyote had been handed sticks of dynamite.
On Saturday, after millions of people gathered in every state to oppose him, the deranged despot posted a vile, infantile video showing him in a “King Trump” fighter jet, flying over citizens exercising their First Amendment right to protest and bombing them with feces. That was offensive.
The demolition is worse, a metaphorical middle finger to us all. An indelible symbol of his hatred for the very people he is supposed to be serving. We have since learned that he is tearing down the entire wing, just an unfathomable assault on the country.
The stately columns and grand fountain on the north side, the beauty of the curved south portico – the White House might be modest in size compared with the homes of other presidents and prime ministers around the world, but it is iconic. It is ours.
Even for someone who has never considered herself very patriotic, at least not in the “rah-rah, we’re the best!” way, the photos are heart-wrenching.
The People’s House, open and unprotected from the outside world. Apropos, as the greatest danger to us is coming from inside its now-mangled walls.
Trump, who recently replaced the lush Rose Garden with a soulless patio, had pledged in July that his 90,000 square foot monstrosity would be near the White House but “not touching it.”
Surprise: He lied.
The White House is a National Historic Landmark and living museum, and it has been home to every president save the first, George Washington. There have been changes over the decades, but it hasn’t undergone a major renovation since just after World War II, when the East Wing was built to cover the underground emergency bunker.
It was also where the first lady kept her offices. It’s where the public was welcome to see a place revered by staff, politicians, everyday Americans, and international visitors for generations.
The project has not been green-lighted by the National Capital Planning Commission. The permitting and planning process to make changes to federal buildings typically takes years, not months.
Congress could have pushed back, but Pinocchio Mike Johnson (R-La.) serves no purpose other than to dance when his puppet master pulls the strings.
Historically, Congress would have appropriated funding for the expansion, but Trump found a workaround: the estimated $300 million project is being privately financed by major corporations, including Apple, Amazon, and Lockheed Martin.
Already beholden to the oligarch class — Trump doesn’t hide its outsized influence on the government and is tanking our economy to increase its, and his, already unfathomable wealth — he has now effectively sold off the physical White House, too.
One wonders if the companies will get logoed banners pasted on the exterior walls of the ballroom, no different from NASCAR vehicles. Or if “The U.S.-Russia State Dinner, Presented by Meta” will be its opening event.
And all of this is happening with the government shut down, with hundreds of thousands of Americans living without pay because the Republicans want to make accessing health care harder. Over 40 million people could lose their SNAP benefits on Nov. 1, meaning families that already struggle to put food on the table are in grave danger. None of that will be changing anytime soon because Johnson refuses to open session, probably so he won’t have to swear in Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva (D-Ariz.), who would become the 218th and deciding vote to force a vote on the release of the Epstein files.
I have long past given up on the leaders of the Democratic Party. The milquetoast responses from Sen. Chuck Schumer and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries as the country burns are infuriating. But if there is anything they could use to get the attention of the widest possible swath of the electorate, it has to be the images of the most-identifiable building in the country pillaged by the national embarrassment that is Donald Trump.
Every American recognizes the significance of the White House and the seriousness of what goes on in its ornate rooms. Not only are world-altering decisions made there, but it is also a home that has hosted weddings, Easter egg rolls, and barbecues, events we the people hold in our own lives.
Trump and his corrupt clan of ghouls are gleefully stripping basics like human rights and civil rights and necessities like equitable education, guardrails meant to protect the environment, and access to healthy foods.
On Monday, we got the clearest picture yet of how he, and they, have destroyed the country.
Shalise Manza Young was most recently a columnist at Yahoo Sports, focusing on the intersection of race, gender and culture in sports. The Associated Press Sports Editors named her one of the 10 best columnists in the country in 2020. She has also written for the Boston Globe and Providence Journal. Find her on Bluesky @shalisemyoung.
As said before, Trump is at best, a tenant or visitor to a landlord's property. Anywhere else, should such a person destroy the landlord's property, they would be summarily evicted and sued for damages. This should be happening here.
The senior Republicans who watch over the workings of Washington DC and the history and gravitas of the US government have just been given a very public and huge FU by Trump personally. "See, I can do anything I damn well please and you wussies won't lay a hand on me"