Trump Remakes White House Rose Garden with Stone Patio, Adds Statues

President Donald Trump has transformed the White House Rose Garden by replacing the lawn with a white stone patio and filling the space with statues of America's founders, including Washington, Hamilton, Franklin, and a new Thomas Jefferson statue. The Jefferson sculpture, created by George Lundeen, was gifted for the Rose Garden and was delayed in delivery due to security and logistics surrounding Independence Day celebrations. Trump described the garden as a personal aesthetic extension of his Mar-a-Lago estate, framing the installations as part of a broader program of White House renovations that also includes gilding the Oval Office, a new ballroom, and a southern lawn structure. Several statues are on loan or gifts, with some pieces arriving late or being conveyed by donors. The project accompanies a broader bid to leave a distinctive mark on Washington’s architectural landscape and to commemorate the country’s semiquincentennial. The White House notes that the collection sits among existing statues and an additional work titled Freedom’s Charge, highlighting the garden as a focal point of Trump’s renovations.