President Donald Trump turned what had started as a fairly routine Tuesday in Washington into an unforgettable moment when he stepped out onto the West Wing roof above the press briefing room and colonnade, just above the newly renovated Rose Garden. He surveyed the area for nearly twenty minutes, hinting at more White House renovations to come.
Accompanied by a small entourage, including architect James McCrery, who is the lead designer of the planned new 90,000-square-foot East Wing ballroom, Trump emerged from a door by the State Dining Room and climbed to the roof that stretches above the Palm Room and briefing room. This portion of the West Wing overlooks the Rose Garden, which was converted to stone paving earlier this summer to make it more event-friendly, especially for guests wearing heels.
Spotted: President Trump atop the White House.
Q: “Sir, why are you are on the roof?”
Q: “Mr. President, what are you doing up there?” pic.twitter.com/MQlA6TUnEb
— CSPAN (@cspan) August 5, 2025
From below, reporters shouted up at him, “Sir, why are you on the roof?” and “Mr. President, what are you doing up there?” Fox News correspondent Peter Doocy was among them. With his trademark grin and a confident fist pump, Trump looked down and replied, “Taking a little walk,” adding cheerfully, “It’s good for your health.” Then he added, while making sweeping gestures with his hands, “More ways to spend my money for the country”, referencing the ballroom project and possibly other upgrades.
At one point, Trump joked about installing “nuclear missiles” on the roof, mimicking a launch motion with his hand, in a quip that underscored both the strangeness and theatricality of the moment.
While the image of a president casually walking the roof of the White House is certainly unusual, it is not entirely without precedent. In the early 1970s, President Jimmy Carter installed solar panels on the West Wing roof. In 1910, President William Howard Taft built a rooftop sleeping porch to escape the summer heat—but no previous president is known to have appeared publicly on the roof in this manner.
Donald Trump is on the roof of the White House screeching at reporters.
If any one of us stood on our roofs yelling at people and making weird gestures, we’d be sent to the funny farm.
25th this guy already. pic.twitter.com/4FSXb9T3jl
— Art Candee 🍿🥤 (@ArtCandee) August 5, 2025
Trump’s rooftop visit came amid a broader effort to reshape and modernize the executive mansion in a Mar-a-Lago-style makeover that includes massive renovations. The most prominent of these is the privately funded ballroom expansion to the East Wing, scheduled to begin in September with an estimated cost of $200 million and completion before 2029. The project is intended to provide seating for up to 650 guests, much larger than the current East Room, and to eliminate the need for outdoor tents at major events.
The newly paved Rose Garden, finished by August 1, offers a look at Trump’s practical approach to White House event spaces, removing the traditional lawn in favor of a white stone patio that better accommodates high-heeled guests and heavy foot traffic.
Observers and political commentators floated a range of interpretations for Trump’s bold rooftop appearance. Some saw it as a spontaneous, attention-grabbing gesture, others as a way to distract the media amid mounting controversies, and still others as a genuine study of potential new construction opportunities. Theories ranged from the balcony being eyed for a rooftop pool or ice rink to simply being a visual statement of power and novelty.
Whatever the motive, the moment was certainly memorable: a 79-year-old president wandering on his rooftop, speaking directly to reporters below, joking about missiles, talking up more self-funded construction, and offering Americans a peek at future changes to their most iconic residence.
Whether future administrations will embrace, reverse, or simply repaint these changes remains to be seen, but for now, Trump occupies a place in history as the first president to walk, wave, and shout from the White House roof.
