The Trump administration is pressing pause on the president’s plans to paint the Eisenhower Executive Office Building white.
In a new sworn declaration submitted to a federal judge in Washington, a Trump administration official said the government would not engage in power washing, cleaning, painting or repainting the historic office building before the end of the year.
The declaration from Andrew Heller, acting commissioner of the Public Buildings Service, comes in response to a lawsuit from preservationists who filed their challenge after President Donald Trump said in a recent interview with Laura Ingraham on Fox News that he was “getting bids right now” to paint the gray granite building white.
“The government’s temporary freeze of the president’s plans marks a significant step forward,” said Greg Werkheiser, founding partner of Cultural Heritage Partners and one of the challengers in the case. “The court battle lies ahead, and we are fully conscious of just how much is at stake for this wonderful building and for the rest of America’s treasures protected under law.”
