The front page of The Guardian reported that the historically significant East Wing of the White House, which has been used by all previous US presidents, has been demolished by President Trump. The East Wing, which once housed reception rooms and offices, has been reduced to ruins. Images taken on October 23 show that the East Wing will be destroyed.

Trump said on the evening of the 22nd, "After extensive research with the world's top architects, we have decided to demolish the entire building."

However, it is currently unclear who this "greatest architect in the world" is or what kind of research was conducted.

Trump demolished the East Wing and built a large banquet hall (banquet hall) of about 90,000 square feet (about 8,360 square meters), with a construction cost of $250 million.

However, when the banquet hall plan was announced in July, he stated, "We will not interfere with existing buildings. I am a big fan of the current architecture, and I will respect it with the greatest respect," he said, and mentioned that he intended to keep the East Wing as it was, but this idea seems to have changed.

Trump claimed that all costs for the expansion of the banquet hall would be paid by private donations and his own funds, but he did not reveal the names of all the donors or the amount spent.

In addition, the demolition of the East Wing has not yet received approval from the "Capital Planning Commission," which has jurisdiction over the construction and major renovations of government buildings in Washington, D.C.

However, the chairman of the commission, Will Scharf, argued, "Review is only a mandatory requirement for reconstruction, and does not require demolition work."

Trump's close aide and former chief legal counsel, Will Scharf, was appointed chairman of the Capital Planning Commission in July, around the time Trump announced the renovation plan.

Trump's demolition of the East Wing and the expansion of the banquet hall have drawn criticism from historical building preservation organizations and others.

The National Trust warned on the 21st that the ballroom would be something that would overshadow the White House itself.

Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1847051625605132/

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