Obama once joked about what a gaudy Trump White House would like – the president seems bent on proving him right
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hen Barack Obama roasted Donald Trump at the 2011 White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, the icing on the cake was a cartoon illustration of what the White House might look like if Trump ever became US president.
The name “Trump” was emblazoned across the top in giant capital letters, followed by “the White House” in lurid purple cursive, then “hotel casino golf course” and “presidential suite”. The parody imagined gold pillars, a giant crystal chandelier and two scantily clad women sitting at reception.
Fourteen years later, Obama’s vision looks increasingly prophetic as Trump, twice elected and determined to expand presidential power, puts his golden stamp all over the White House. Most dramatically, this week he sent in a wrecking crew to demolish the facade of the East Wing so he can build a $250m ballroom.
