Michelle Obama has opened up about her visceral physical reaction to the demolition of the White House’s historic East Wing, which was razed to the ground to make way for President Donald Trump‘s $300 million ballroom.
For years, the East Wing has housed the official office of the first lady—and was where Michelle was based during husband Barack Obama‘s eight-year term in office.
However, that wing was torn down in October as part of President Trump’s plans to outfit the White House with its own 90,000-square-foot ballroom, a move that sparked fierce criticism from Democrats, who accused the 79-year-old of destroying a vital piece of history.
Now, Michelle, 61, has weighed in on the controversy during an appearance on Jamie Kern Lima‘s podcast, when she was asked by the host: “What did it feel like for you and your body when you saw the East Wing being demolished?”
“It’s not about me, it’s about us and our traditions and what they stand for,” Michelle responded. “I think in my body I felt confusion because I’m like, ‘Well, who are we? What do we value and who decides that?’”
The mom of two noted that she has been thinking a lot about the state of the nation recently—and what it truly means to be an American in light of the changing political landscape.
“That’s the thing that’s going through my head a lot lately: ‘Who are we? What are the rules?’” she shared. “Because I’m confused by what are our norms and our mores, not the laws, but how do we live together? That’s the part of it that hurts.
“It’s not the house, I’m just, you know, just trying to understand the assignment. And so I think I felt a loss for us as a nation.”
Although she conceded that the demolition of the East Wing prompted her to take a wider look at society, Michelle made clear it wasn’t personal.
“Personally, you know, that’s not our house. That’s the People’s House,” she said.
Initially, Trump had insisted that the addition of a 90,000-square-foot ballroom at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. would not interfere with the existing structure, telling reporters in July: “It won’t interfere with the current building. It won’t be. It’ll be near it but not touching it—and pays total respect to the existing building, which I’m the biggest fan of.”
However, those plans are understood to have changed after a meeting with architects revealed there would not be enough space for the planned ballroom without the destruction of the East Wing.
During a recent interview with Fox News host Laura Ingraham, the president defended the project, telling the Fox News host that the East Wing “looked like hell” when it was torn down—noting that the ballroom will be a much grander addition to the White House.
“The East Wing was a beautiful, little, tiny structure that was built many years ago that was renovated and expanded and disbanded and columns ripped out—and it had nothing to do with the original building,” he said.
“It was a poor, sad sight, and I could have built the ballroom around it, but it would not have been—we’re building one of the greatest ballrooms in the world.”
The president noted that the ballroom would be paid for privately, not by the taxpayer, calling on a host of wealthy donors to contribute to the project.
However, his plans for the opulent events space are reported to have hit a snag in recent weeks, according to The Washington Post, which reports that Trump has been quarreling with James McCrery II, the architect he hand-picked to design the White House ballroom, over its size.
According to the outlet, the architect has expressed concerns about the enormity of the project, noting that the finished ballroom could dwarf the actual White House, which spans just 55,000 square feet.
A White House official conceded that Trump and McCrery have disagreed but branded it “constructive dialogue.”
“As with any building, there is a conversation between the principal and the architect. All parties are excited to execute on the president’s vision on what will be the greatest addition to the White House since the Oval Office,” the official told the outlet.
During a White House dinner hosted for donors, Trump previously revealed a glimpse into his plans for the space, saying that it would be “one of the best anywhere in the world.”
He also described the new ballroom as having four sides of “bulletproof” glass that is “totally appropriate in color and in window shape.”
Construction at the historical home has been ongoing since Trump took office.
Before he began work on the ballroom, the president came under fire for paving over the iconic White House rose garden in a bid to make the outdoor event space safer for guests, particularly women in heels.
“You know, we use [the Rose Garden] for press conference and it doesn’t work because the people fall,” he said during a March interview on Fox News. “The terrain can be wet, and the soft ground can be an issue for some. Women, with the high heels, it just didn’t work.”
Despite the backlash over the plans, Trump pressed on with his redesign of the outdoor space, with images taken in June revealing that the grass had been ripped up and replaced with gravel.
The completed paved area was later filled with tables, chairs, and yellow-and-white umbrellas that many noted were almost identical to those used poolside at Trump’s Florida resort, Mar-a-Lago.
As part of the redesign, the Rose Garden has been outfitted with new drainage systems to prevent water from pooling at its center.
Work on the historic garden began June 9, when employees of the National Park Service began removing a limestone border that had been installed by Trump’s wife, Melania, 55, during his first term in office.
The renovation quickly progressed, with images taken on June 17 and June 18 revealing that the entire lawn had been ripped up by bulldozers—as well as several poles that were under the ground—before gravel was laid across the entire surface.
Despite Trump’s insistence that the garden renovation was entirely necessary, the project has sparked some backlash from critics, who insist that the “removal” of such an important piece of White House history is disrespectful.
Separate from the White House, the president also revealed recently that he wants to build a new monument—an Arc de Triomphe-style arch near the Lincoln Memorial.