Donald Trump Moves Barack Obama’s White House Portrait to Hidden Stairwell in Another Breach of Protocol

President Donald Trump broke from White House precedent to again move former President Barack Obama’s official portrait further from public view.

White House tradition says that the two most recent presidential portraits should hang prominently on either side of the Grand Foyer for members of the public to appreciate during tours and events. Since President Joe Biden’s White House portrait has not yet been completed, the two most recent portraits are of Obama and George W. Bush.

Back in April, the president swapped Obama’s portrait with a painting of himself from the day of the July 2024 assassination attempt in Butler, Pa. At the time, Obama’s portrait was moved across the Grand Foyer, to where Bush’s painting had been located, and Bush’s portrait was relocated to a different part of the White House beside his late father, George H.W. Bush.

Now, Obama’s portrait has been moved again to a much less desirable location.

On Monday, Aug. 11, a White House official confirmed to PEOPLE that Obama’s portrait was removed entirely from the Grand Foyer and now rests atop the Grand Staircase.

The stairwell, which leads up to the president’s private living area, is off-limits to visitors and partially obstructed from public view. Obama’s portrait is hung in a corner at the top of the staircase — the furthest point from visitors — and shares a wall with Dwight D. Eisenhower and both Bushes’, which are hung lower.

CNN reported that Obama’s portrait in particular is “firmly out of view” for visitors. Insiders also told the outlet that Trump signs off on nearly all aesthetic changes to the White House, no matter how small.

A spokesperson for Obama declined to comment on the recent change.

Trump is no stranger to putting his stamp on the White House, which serves as a home, office and living museum.

In the first weeks of Trump’s presidency, a framed New York Post cover displaying his mug shot was spotted on the wall just outside the Oval Office, and he crammed a number of historic paintings onto the walls surrounding his desk.

In June, when Hillary Clinton’s first lady portrait was removed in the East Wing, he replaced it with a portrait of former first lady Patricia Nixon and a bold painting by “MAGA Angelo” of an American flag pattern over his face.

It’s not unusual for presidents to shift around art when they take office, though the publicly accessible areas are intended to pay tribute to American history.

In addition to changing up the art, The Wall Street Journal reported in April that the president had enlisted his Mar-a-Lago “gold guy,” cabinetmaker John Icart, to add gold finishes throughout the White House, including gilded carvings for the Oval Office fireplace mantel, a gold Trump crest in a doorway and gold coasters with his last name on it.

Trump also recently paved over the White House Rose Garden lawn, which was installed under President John F. Kennedy, and announced plans to expand the White House complex with the construction of a 90,000-square-foot ballroom.

President Donald Trump broke from White House precedent to again move former President Barack Obama’s official portrait further from public view.

White House tradition says that the two most recent presidential portraits should hang prominently on either side of the Grand Foyer for members of the public to appreciate during tours and events. Since President Joe Biden’s White House portrait has not yet been completed, the two most recent portraits are of Obama and George W. Bush.

Back in April, the president swapped Obama’s portrait with a painting of himself from the day of the July 2024 assassination attempt in Butler, Pa. At the time, Obama’s portrait was moved across the Grand Foyer, to where Bush’s painting had been located, and Bush’s portrait was relocated to a different part of the White House beside his late father, George H.W. Bush.

Now, Obama’s portrait has been moved again to a much less desirable location.

On Monday, Aug. 11, a White House official confirmed to PEOPLE that Obama’s portrait was removed entirely from the Grand Foyer and now rests atop the Grand Staircase.

The stairwell, which leads up to the president’s private living area, is off-limits to visitors and partially obstructed from public view. Obama’s portrait is hung in a corner at the top of the staircase — the furthest point from visitors — and shares a wall with Dwight D. Eisenhower and both Bushes’, which are hung lower.

CNN reported that Obama’s portrait in particular is “firmly out of view” for visitors. Insiders also told the outlet that Trump signs off on nearly all aesthetic changes to the White House, no matter how small.

A spokesperson for Obama declined to comment on the recent change.

Trump is no stranger to putting his stamp on the White House, which serves as a home, office and living museum.

In the first weeks of Trump’s presidency, a framed New York Post cover displaying his mug shot was spotted on the wall just outside the Oval Office, and he crammed a number of historic paintings onto the walls surrounding his desk.

In June, when Hillary Clinton’s first lady portrait was removed in the East Wing, he replaced it with a portrait of former first lady Patricia Nixon and a bold painting by “MAGA Angelo” of an American flag pattern over his face.

It’s not unusual for presidents to shift around art when they take office, though the publicly accessible areas are intended to pay tribute to American history.

In addition to changing up the art, The Wall Street Journal reported in April that the president had enlisted his Mar-a-Lago “gold guy,” cabinetmaker John Icart, to add gold finishes throughout the White House, including gilded carvings for the Oval Office fireplace mantel, a gold Trump crest in a doorway and gold coasters with his last name on it.

Trump also recently paved over the White House Rose Garden lawn, which was installed under President John F. Kennedy, and announced plans to expand the White House complex with the construction of a 90,000-square-foot ballroom.