The president has brought a constant stream of changes to the White House property since returning to office
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NEED TO KNOW
- Donald Trump wants to use “magic paint” to make the Eisenhower Executive Office Building bright white
- Experts warn the paint could damage the historic granite exterior, and preservationist groups have filed a lawsuit to stop the renovation
- Trump first teased the makeover of the 19th-century office building in November 2025
Donald Trump wants to use “magic paint" on the outside of an office building by the White House, despite expert warnings against it.
According to CNN, the president, 79, is championing the use of “magic paint with silicate” on the Eisenhower Executive Office Building (EEOB) — a National Historic Landmark next to the West Wing, which houses a majority of White House staff, according to the National Archives.
Trump has spent much of his second term renovating the White House inside and out, customizing it to his personal taste, despite others’ objections.
He now wants to make the 19th-century building’s granite surface a shade of bright white, according to CNN.
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It’s a move he first teased on Fox News’ The Ingraham Angle late last year. He said at the time, “I don't even know if I'm going to do it yet.”
Since then, Trump has moved to make the change, sending renderings to the Commission of Fine Arts, which features a number of his supporters, that show two options for the building renovation: one that covers it with white paint entirely, and one that goes for all-white save for the exposed basement exterior, per CNN.
Documents submitted to the Commission of Fine Arts argue that the building — commissioned by President Ulysses S. Grant and finished in 1888, per the White House Historical Association — “has been largely neglected since its construction in the late 1800s,” CNN reported.
The president also privately claimed in a document that the “magic paint” he wants to use would “strengthen the stone, keep water out, prevent staining, be easy to apply, and rarely require painting,” per the outlet.
On Thursday, April 16, the commission will review the submitted materials and weigh in on the proposed plans for the EEOB. However, two preservationist groups warn that they are illegal and ill-suited to the building’s granite exterior.
The groups, DC Preservation League and Cultural Heritage Partners, filed a lawsuit in an attempt to stop Trump and federal officials from making changes to the building without a standard review process, and they assembled a panel of 25 experts who have overseen similar projects to share their conclusions about Trump’s intended use of “magic paint.”
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According to CNN, the experts said “mineral silicate paints are not suited for use on granite,” and priming the granite would cause “permanent damage.” Granite does not chemically bond with the paint Trump wants to use, they warned.
Not only would the paint not prevent staining, the experts said, per CNN, but it is actually “likely to be much more visible on paint than on the existing granite surface.”
Trump previously showed a mockup of the all-white Eisenhower Executive Office Building to Fox News' Laura Ingraham in November 2025 as he teased his proposed makeover for the landmark building.
"You know it was always considered an ugly building, and it's actually one of the most beautiful buildings ever built," Trump said of the ornate offices, as Ingraham, 62, defended the current look, stating, "I kind of like it."
Trump then continued, "Look at that, how beautiful that is with a coat of paint. It's all painting. Most of it's painting. It's cleaning and pointing and painting. It needs other work. Look at that, how beautiful that is."
Still, the Fox News presenter seemed concerned about the makeover, asking Trump if he thought the rendering looked "like a big white blob." However, he was undeterred, arguing, "No, no, what it does is it brings out all the detail.”
The president also added that the EEOB was constructed using greystone, which he took issue with. "Gray is for funerals," he said.
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According to the U.S. General Services Administration, the EEOB was designed by Alfred B. Mullett, the supervising architect of the Treasury Department, and chief designer Richard Von Ezdorf to replace two buildings that bordered the White House. It was done in the French Second Empire architectural style and stood as the largest office building in Washington, D.C., upon its completion.
The EEOB — which got its current name in 1999 — originally housed the State Department, Navy Department and the War Department, but they were ultimately replaced by the Bureau of the Budget and White House staff. Beginning with Lyndon B. Johnson in 1961, the building also housed the vice president and his staff.
Despite a recommendation to demolish the building in 1957, the EEOB became a National Historic Landmark years later in 1969 and has stood ever since.
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