Trump signs order designating Oval Office and Cabinet Room a national monument

President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order designating the Oval Office and the White House Cabinet Room as a national monument, a step intended to block major renovations to those rooms unless Congress approves them, according to the Ohio Capital Journal.

The same report was published by several States Newsroom outlets, including the Oklahoma Voice, the Florida Phoenix and the Missouri Independent. They reported that Trump said significant changes to the two rooms should require congressional sign-off.

Speaking about the Oval Office, Trump said, "We've had a lot of victories in this office," according to the Ohio Capital Journal. He added, "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."

The order comes after Trump had the White House East Wing demolished to make way for a ballroom, the outlets noted.

Trump said he plans to ask Congress to write the order into law. The outlets reported that if lawmakers do not act during the current lame-duck session, passage is unlikely in the next Congress, when Democrats will control both the House and the Senate.

The signing follows this week's midterm elections, in which Republicans lost their majorities in both chambers, according to the reports. Since the vote, the outlets said, the president has concentrated on construction and renovation projects around Washington, D.C.

In his final public appearance before Election Day, Trump held a press conference at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, which is among the projects he has focused on, the Oklahoma Voice reported. His press conference the day after the election centered on progress in building the ballroom, according to the outlets.

The text of the proclamation had not been released as of Thursday afternoon, the Florida Phoenix and the other outlets reported. Details about how the monument designation would be enforced, and what types of changes would count as major modifications, were not available in the reports.

The Oval Office serves as the president's primary workspace, and the Cabinet Room is used for meetings with the president's top advisers. National monument designations are typically used to protect sites of historic or cultural significance.

Compiled by True News from reporting by Ohio Capital Journal, Oklahoma Voice, Florida Phoenix and Missouri Independent. Each outlet's original story is linked below.

Originally published by True News: https://truenews.bagleyenterprises.net/stories/826