The White House is not denying a report that President Trump has considered turning the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room back into an indoor pool — and moving the White House press corps out of the West Wing.
According to The New York Times, Trump talked about moving the press corps out of the briefing room during one of his final meetings with outgoing Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, and assured her it would be her “last legacy.” The suggestion did not move forward at the time. Asked about the report, Communications Director Steven Cheung did not shoot it down: “All options remain on the table, and we will make an announcement when appropriate.”
It is not the first time the idea has surfaced in Trump’s second term. The Times reports he has told aides he hopes to bring back the indoor pool built under President Franklin D. Roosevelt, potentially relocating the press corps to the Eisenhower Executive Office Building next door. The FDR pool was covered over in 1970 under President Richard Nixon to create the briefing room the press uses today.
Trump signaled the idea himself in September, posting a side-by-side image on Truth Social: the briefing room labeled “Fake News Before,” and a gleaming indoor pool labeled “FDR Pool After.” The Wall Street Journal reported last month that Trump had “repeatedly” weighed moving the entire press corps out of the White House, although a senior official said at the time there were no plans to relocate them.
Cheung’s full response to the Times framed the story as another media fabrication while leaving the door wide open: “America is rightly distrustful of the fake news media because they fabricate stories based off lies and sources who are not even privy to any type of information. All options remain on the table, and we will make an announcement when appropriate.”
The report arrives with the press secretary’s office vacant and Trump’s war with the press corps escalating. Just last week, Judge Timothy Kelly barred the administration from reinstating its ban on CNN, MS NOW and Politico reporters accessing the White House grounds. On Tuesday, Trump warned a White House reporter to “be careful” during a tense Oval Office exchange. According to the Times, as the president’s frustrations with the media have mounted, his current advisers have encouraged him to take drastic measures to punish journalists.
Never miss a story.
Join our Telegram channel and get every article link the second it’s published.
Join Telegram Channel