Trump Fires All Six Members of the Fine Arts Commission Set to Review His Ballroom

Effective October 28, 2025, the White House terminated all six members of the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, the body Congress created more than a century ago to advise the president, Congress and District of Columbia authorities on the design of federal buildings, monuments and memorials in the capital. The members, among them architect Bruce Becker, had been appointed by President Biden to four-year terms, several running through 2028. The commission has historically reviewed major projects at the White House and was positioned to review two Trump construction projects: the State Ballroom replacing the demolished East Wing, and a proposed triumphal arch. One of the removed commissioners said the agency would otherwise have conducted a full review of the plans for the structure replacing the East Wing.

Removing an advisory design body immediately before it would have reviewed the president's own building projects eliminates the outside professional check that the commission exists to supply, and does so through personnel action rather than through any change to the commission's statutory mandate.

The terminations took effect immediately. No court had reviewed the removals as of the end of October 2025.