Trump again proposes moving press centre out of White House and restoring Roosevelt pool

US President Donald Trump has once again raised the issue of potentially moving members of the media from the White House grounds. The New York Times reports that this idea was discussed during his first term but is now gaining new momentum.

Discussion with Karoline Leavitt

The publication states that in late August, during a meeting in the Oval Office, Trump proposed to then-White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt that journalists be removed from the briefing room, named after James Brady. This proposal was made in the presence of several senior officials. According to the president, implementing this plan would become Leavitt's "last legacy" in her role.

However, during Leavitt's tenure, this initiative did not progress further. As three sources note, Trump returned to this topic repeatedly over several months. Meanwhile, on 27 August, Leavitt left the White House due to the birth of her child.

Plan to restore the pool

Alongside the idea of moving the press centre, Trump discussed restoring the indoor pool built by President Franklin Roosevelt in 1933. This structure was initially used as a therapeutic procedure for Roosevelt's legs, which were affected by polio. Later, at the initiative of Richard Nixon, the pool was covered over to free up space for journalists to work.

Symbolic significance of the decision

The New York Times emphasises that while moving the media may seem like a minor step, given Trump's attacks on journalists in general, it will carry deep symbolic undertones. The close proximity of the press to the building of the US executive branch has traditionally been a confirmation of the role of a free press in a constitutional democracy.

Moreover, this will be a decision that future presidents will find difficult to reverse. Some staff members in the president's inner circle believe that moving the press centre, possibly to the Eisenhower Executive Office Building located across the street, will become the final stage of a series of large-scale attacks on the press that have already exceeded the expectations of most of them.

Trump's public statements

On 27 September, Donald Trump published two images on social media. The first showed the briefing room in its current state with the caption "Fake News", while the second showed the same room as a gilded pool with the caption "FDR Pool".