President Donald Trump has moved the official portraits of former Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush, and George H.W. Bush to a restricted White House stairwell, breaking with tradition that places recent presidents in prominent public view.
CNN reports Obama’s portrait was relocated to the top of the Grand Staircase, an area inaccessible to the public, while both Bush portraits were also moved to the staircase landing near the private residence. Typically, recent presidents’ portraits are displayed in visible locations for visitors and official events.
The Robert McCurdy painting of Obama had already been moved once in April, replaced by a painting depicting Trump surviving an assassination attempt. Biden’s official portrait is still pending.
The moves come amid strained relations with the former presidents. Trump has recently accused Obama of treason over the 2016 election, prompting the DOJ to open a grand jury probe into alleged intelligence fabrication. The Bush family’s tensions with Trump date back years, with both George H.W. and George W. Bush critical of his presidency.
During Trump’s first term, he similarly replaced the Clinton and George W. Bush portraits in the Grand Foyer with those of William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt.
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