Trump demolished entire White House East Wing?

Claim:

In October 2025, the entire White House East Wing was demolished as part of U.S. President Donald Trump’s plan to build a new ballroom.

Rating:

In late October 2025, rumors swirled that the entire East Wing of the White House was demolished as part of U.S. President Donald Trump’s plan to build a new ballroom.

The claims circulated after Trump vowed in July 2025 his new project would not “interfere with the current building.” Referring to that statement, one X user claimed on Oct. 20 that “Trump lied” and “destroyed” the East Wing for the ballroom (archived):

DONALD TRUMP HAS JUST DESTROYED PART OF THE WHITE HOUSE.

TRUMP PROMISED THAT THE CONSTRUCTION OF HIS RIDICULOUS BALLROOM WOULD NOT INTERFERE WITH THE EXISTING STRUCTURE, IT TURNS OUT THAT WAS JUST ANOTHER TRUMP LIE. TRUMP AND HIS ACTIONS ARE A NATIONAL DISGRACE.

IT IS THE PEOPLE’S HOUSE DONALD, NOT YOURS!

High-profile critics of Trump spread the rumor. For instance, MSNBC host Rachel Maddow posted on Bluesky (archived) quotes and a link to a Washington Post article about the reported demolition, with the caption “omg!” Also, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who lost to Trump in the 2016 presidential election, said of the alleged construction on Bluesky (archived), “It’s not his house. It’s your house. And he’s destroying it.”

The claim that the entire White House East Wing was demolished in late October 2025 was true.

On Oct. 22, 2025, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that construction crews would tear down the entire East Wing for his ballroom project, which he said would cost him and a group of private donors $300 million. “In order to do it properly, we had to take down the existing structure,” Trump said, as he held up renderings of the planned ballroom.

The following day, photos from reputable sources, such as The Associated Press, confirmed the East Wing was gone, including the East Colonnade, a long hallway that connected the Residence (the central building of the White House) with the East Wing.

The Washington Post first reported on the East Wing’s teardown with an article on Oct. 20. Later in the day, several reputable news outlets confirmed that the demolition project had begun. At that point, it was not clear how much of the existing building would go down.

As the week advanced, more photographs of the construction project surfaced. By Oct. 21, most of the building was gone, leaving a narrow band of the north and western façades.

One photo, taken from the building of the Treasury Department, which has the most direct view of the East Wing, showed the demolition. Chris Geidner, who reports on legal matters, posted the photo on his website, Law Dork, without citing a source as Treasury employees were reportedly banned from taking and sharing photographs of the site:

(Law Dork)

On Oct. 23, the demolition crew finished the teardown of both the East Wing and the East Colonnade, as several reputable news sources reported.

Trump said the ballroom would cost $300 million, up from a $200 million price tag he announced in July 2025. The Associated Press reported that it would be nearly twice the size of the White House. 

Construction crews built the East Wing in 1902 when Theodore Roosevelt was president. Officials expanded the building in 1942, under former President Franklin D. Roosevelt, to cover the bunker he used during World War II (now the Presidential Emergency Operations Center).

The East Wing later housed the offices of the first lady, her staff and the White House social secretary. It also served as the visitors’ entrance for tours of the presidential residence. The White House’s movie theater used to be inside the East Colonnade.