President Trump's persistent focus on sprucing up Washington, D.C.—from regilding statues to repairing the Reflecting Pool—is stirring unease among Republicans who warn it could hurt the party in the upcoming midterms, when voters across the country are grappling with rising costs.
Just this week, Trump used a signing ceremony for an unrelated executive order and an energy announcement in the Oval Office to highlight the completed repairs of the Reflecting Pool on the National Mall, while also touting fountain restorations around the city. The administration has also committed $5 million to regild the four gold-plated Arts of War and Arts of Peace equestrian statues near the Lincoln Memorial.
Supporters argue these projects will pay long-term dividends for the District and that the administration can simultaneously tackle affordability. But critics say the effort is tone-deaf and disconnected from the lives of most Americans.
“I was in North Carolina last week, and over the weekend I didn’t hear anybody talking about reflecting pools. I did hear them talk about what they spend at grocery stores,” said Doug Heye, a former Republican National Committee spokesperson. “When you are holding press gaggles in front of a ballroom construction site that no one asked for, you’re proactively sending the signal to voters: ‘I don’t know what’s important to you, but here’s what’s important to me.’”
Heye added: “Go into any state that has targeted races, whether it’s North Carolina, Maine, Ohio, Texas, and ask them, ‘Hey, do you think that we need a triumphant arch to be built on the Mall?’ and they’re going to look at you like you’ve just landed from Venus.”
Another GOP operative agreed the beautification push is rarely discussed outside Washington, though they expressed general support for the projects ahead of America’s 250th anniversary celebrations. “In battleground districts around the country, this isn’t something that comes up,” the operative said, calling it a “D.C.-beltway” issue.
While Washington is a predominantly Democratic city, some residents have praised the repairs, including the restoration of fountains at Meridian Hill Park, also known as Malcolm X Park. The GOP operative contrasted the recent renovations with the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests that saw statues of controversial figures torn down, calling it “a good contrast.” But they noted that Trump’s proposed White House ballroom has drawn bipartisan criticism on Capitol Hill, adding, “There’s been so much drama about the funding.”
The costs are mounting. The Reflecting Pool repairs alone topped $13 million, and The New York Times reported that the contractor was receiving an inflated profit margin. Trump has also pushed for a triumphal arch, a statue garden, and his own ballroom—projects that have faced legal challenges, as an appeals panel recently signaled doubt about the ballroom’s authority.
White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers defended the efforts: “President Trump remains laser-focused on keeping the American people safe, lowering costs for working families, and making our country greater than ever before—including the beautification of our nation’s capital, which has been neglected for decades. The President’s beautification projects are so popular that Democrats are even publicly praising his efforts throughout Washington, DC.”
Trump spent several minutes touting the projects during a farmers roundtable in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, on Friday, showing before-and-after images of the Columbus Circle Fountains and the Reflecting Pool. The crowd applauded as he said, “We’re very proud of Washington. We had 22 fountains that didn’t work.” He also claimed, “Washington, D.C., is a safe city. It was a very unsafe city a year and a half ago.”
An Interior Department spokesperson, Katie Martin, echoed the administration’s line, saying: “Obama and Biden neglected this upkeep for decades. D.C. residents and visitors are experiencing working fountains across the district, safe streets and clean park land for the first time in decades, all thanks to President Donald J. Trump.”
The push to beautify D.C. ahead of the nation’s 250th birthday comes as many Americans struggle with the cost of living. Trump has also been addressing economic concerns, such as promising farmers fertilizer relief as the Iran war drives prices up, but the D.C. projects risk overshadowing that message.
