A person wearing a mask and dressed like U.S. President Donald Trump stands outside the White House, which is covered in a tarp with a picture of the front of the White House to cover construction scaffolding on the North Portico, in front of a fence that blocks off Lafayette Square, in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 13, 2026. REUTERS/Kylie Cooper
President Donald Trump appalled one political analyst on Monday with a "quintessential" Trumpian move to protect one of his legacy projects.
Trump has engaged in multiple renovation projects across Washington, D.C., from multiple updates at the White House to pushing forward an idea to build the Trump Arch, modeled after the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. As part of those projects, the Trump administration has erected a large fence around Lafayette Square, which journalist Dan Rather noted in a new Substack essay is the only place in D.C. to get a clear view of the White House these days.
The Trump administration has also put forward plans to permanently fence off Lafayette Square during “heightened conditions," Rather noted in the essay. He added that fencing off Lafayette Square, which has a rich history of peaceful protest, would be a "slap in the face" to American democracy.
"Peaceful protesting is a cornerstone of our national identity," Rather wrote. "Blocking access to the most recognizable place to assemble, to publicly oppose the government, and to hold the powerful accountable is detestable. But it is quintessential Donald Trump."
"Distancing the White House proper from real Americans is an apropos metaphor for this administration. The 'haves' are in charge. Everyone else must move along. The president doesn’t like unsightly things, especially protests outside his bedroom window," Rather added.
Rather also pointed to what he suspects is motivating Trump in his endeavors.
"Trump wants to ensure his legacy projects are permanent, or as close to permanent as they can be," Rather wrote. "He is devoting extraordinary amounts of his time and your money to that end, because he fears that when his term is over, and he has shuffled off this mortal coil, Americans’ appetite to honor him will be scant."