President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday declaring the Oval Office and the White House Cabinet Room a national monument, a move meant to block major renovations of the two rooms unless Congress approves them.
Trump said no major modifications should be made to either space without congressional sign-off. He tied the order to the Oval Office's record, saying his administration had won many victories there.
So we’re making it a national monument, and it will not be allowed to be touched by anybody, destroyed, ripped down by stupid people.
Donald Trump, President
The protections come from a president who tore down the East Wing of the White House to clear space for a ballroom.
Trump said he would ask Congress to write the order into law. The window is narrow: if lawmakers do not act during the lame-duck session, codification is unlikely once Democrats take control of both chambers in the next Congress.
Republicans lost their House and Senate majorities in this week's midterm elections. Since then, the president has kept his attention on renovation projects around Washington.
His post-election press conference, held the day after the Republican losses, centered on updates about the ballroom's construction. His last appearance before Election Day was a press conference at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, another project he has focused on.
The text of the proclamation had not been released as of Thursday afternoon.
