President Donald Trump has installed highly partisan plaques under presidential portraits on the White House's Presidential Walk of Fame, offering critical, often bombastic, descriptions of his predecessors, including calling Joe Biden "sleepy" and "the worst President," and Barack Obama "divisive."
President Donald Trump has unveiled controversial, partisan plaques on the White House's Presidential Walk of Fame, affixed beneath portraits of all U.S. commanders in chief, including himself. These additions, first publicly seen on Wednesday, December 17, 2025, represent Trump's latest effort to personalize the White House and challenge established historical narratives. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt stated the plaques offer "eloquently written descriptions" and many were penned by the President himself, featuring his characteristic bombastic language and erratic capitalization. An introductory plaque declares the exhibit was "conceived, built, and dedicated by President Donald J. Trump as a tribute to past Presidents, good, bad, and somewhere in the middle." This initiative is part of a broader remodeling effort that includes adorning the Oval Office in gold, planning a massive East Wing ballroom, and influencing how national history is presented by institutions like the Smithsonian and during the nation's 250th anniversary in 2026. Specific examples of the plaques' content include: * **Joe Biden**: Labeled "Sleepy Joe" and "by far, the worst President in American History," the text falsely asserts he was elected fraudulently and blames him for inflation, energy/immigration policies, and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Biden is also the only president in the display not recognized with a gilded portrait, instead featuring an autopen. * **Barack Obama**: Described as "a community organizer, one term Senator from Illinois, and one of the most divisive political figures in American History." His "Unaffordable Care Act" is deemed "highly ineffective," and the plaques highlight Trump's termination of the "terrible Iran Nuclear Deal" and "one-side Paris Climate Accords." * **George W. Bush**: Praised for creating the Department of Homeland Security and leading after 9/11, but criticized for "wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, both of which should not have happened." * **Bill Clinton**: Receives faint praise for crime legislation, social safety net overhaul, and balanced budgets, but the plaques credit a Republican Congress and the 1990s "tech boom," while noting "scandals." His North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is called "bad for the United States." Aides to Biden and Obama declined to comment, while an aide to Bush did not return a message. The controversial plaques underscore Trump's ongoing determination to reshape the historical perception of U.S. presidencies.
