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Is Trump's Washington makeover beauty or branding?

Misha Komadovsky in Washington, D.C.
June 29, 2026

US President Donald Trump is putting his stamp on Washington, D.C., from White House decor to major changes in the capital's symbolic spaces. But with legal challenges and public backlash growing, is this beautification — or a branding campaign?

https://p.dw.com/p/5GGJF

From the Rose Garden at the White House and the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool to gilded decor and a reported $600-million ballroom, US President Donald Trumpis reshaping Washington, D.C., in his image.

Misha Komadovsky
Misha Komadovsky Washington correspondent focussing on foreign policy, global diplomacy and Russia's war in Ukraine.@komadovsky