Trump Slams Obama’s ‘Dirty, Filthy and Broken’ White House

Donald Trump has responded angrily to Barack Obama’s joke about his White House renovations, claiming the former president left the building “filthy, dirty and broken.”

Trump has repeatedly criticized Obama since the Democrat mocked his decorating choices, saying the White House now looked as if “Saddam Hussein opened a Cheesecake Factory.”

The president revived the dispute during a rally in Mississippi on Monday night, where he argued that Obama had left the presidential residence in poor condition.

Trump said he had instructed reporters to tell Obama that the White House “is a symbol of America.” He added that people notice when the building is “filthy, dirty and broken,” its windows are cracked and exterior monuments look sound on one side but damaged on the other.

He recalled visiting the White House two decades ago and said he was “surprised” by the state in which he found it.

“This place is in bad shape, it really is,” Trump said. “I made up for lost time because I did a job, and it’s in better shape than it was built and more beautiful.”

Trump also rejected suggestions that renovations consume his schedule, insisting he works on them casually as he walks back from the Oval Office.

“I’d walk, I’d look up and say, ‘Boy, that wall is really bad. Let’s go, we’ve got to fix it, fellas,’” he said, praising the “really talented people” responsible for the work.

Trump accused Obama of disliking “successful companies” because of the Cheesecake Factory comparison.

“I fix things very good, very beautifully, and I always build beautiful and inexpensive,” Trump said. “He said, ‘This isn’t a Cheesecake Factory.’ Can you believe it? That’s a very successful company. He doesn’t like successful companies.”

Trump had also attacked Obama earlier Monday during remarks to reporters at Joint Base Andrews. Obama, who once served as an inspiration for Trump’s entry into politics, has increasingly become a target of the president’s criticism.

“For you to say it’s a Cheesecake Factory, that just shows why you were a lousy president,” Trump told reporters at the military base.

“He’s not smart at all because of the way he ran the country. Only a stupid person would run the country like that,” Trump added.

Trump said Obama needed the situation explained to him because he was “not a smart guy,” arguing that the former president had failed to notice “dirt and filth,” along with walls that had not been cleaned for years.

“Guys like Obama don’t see it,” Trump said, adding that his predecessor had overlooked broken ornaments and other defects in the building while defending his own White House upgrades.

Obama made the original remarks during a Saturday campaign event for Democrats in Ohio. He teased Trump’s enthusiasm for construction and remodeling projects, joking that the president “should be on HGTV.”

‘Guy’s building a ballroom that’s bigger than the White House! Paved over the Rose Garden, put a helicopter pad on the South Lawn and there’s gold everywhere!’ 

He then turned his attention to Trump’s elaborate gold decorations and ambitious construction projects.

‘What’s up with the gold?’ Obama demanded. ‘I mean, he’s got the one that’s looking like Saddam Hussein opened a cheesecake factory.’

But Obama’s criticism quickly turned from mockery to accusations of corruption and of Trump of using the presidency to benefit himself, his family and his allies.

‘The one thing that the current president is focused on other than home improvements is enriching himself and his family and his cronies,’ Obama said.

He pointed to Trump’s cryptocurrency ventures and government contracts involving his children’s businesses as examples of what he described as a pattern of self-enrichment.

‘We have lost count of all the deals he and his family have done. You can’t keep up. Meme coins, taxpayer-funded contracts for his kids’ companies,’ Obama said.

He also alleged that financial dealings involving Trump associates showed a wider culture of favoritism at the top of the administration.

‘This is a culture that’s set at the top,’ Obama said. 

Trump framed his extensive refurbishments as essential structural care, brushing off criticism over projects that included flattening the East Wing for an event space, laying hardscaping over the Rose Garden, repainting iconic exterior columns and installing lavish gold fixtures in the Oval Office.

The official White House X account quickly joined the fray, taking a jab at the chain’s notoriously endless 20–page, 250–item menu.

‘Since we’re talking about The Cheesecake Factory… the only thing bigger than the menu is the list of President Trump’s accomplishments,’ the account posted with a fake menu of a list of things Trump has achieved so far during this presidency.

Trump defended his record voraciously.

‘I’ve taken care of the White House. I fixed it with the finest artisans in the world,’ he said to reporters. 

‘We have to explain to Obama that the White House is a symbol of America, and it has to be maintained properly.’