President Donald Trump was reportedly in the middle of a “highly classified” national security briefing when the meeting took an unexpected turn, not because of a military update, but because of his obsession with turning the White House into a personal renovation project.
According to New York Times reporter Jonathan Swan, who co-authored the book Regime Change with Maggie Haberman, a contractor carrying stone samples for the White House Rose Garden renovation walked directly into the Oval Office during a highly sensitive defense meeting.
Speaking on CNN, Swan described the moment as striking.
“We have a scene in the book where several aides are in the room for a highly classified defense briefing,” Swan said before recounting what happened next.
“This guy walks in, like salt-of-the-earth kind of looking guy, and he’s holding up stone samples for the patio that Trump’s building at the Rose Garden,” Swan said. “It’s just like, extremely classified, sensitive, national security meeting.”
According to Swan, the contractor appeared to have routine access to the Oval Office. Trump then reportedly paused the meeting, walked outside to the Rose Garden, and began making phone calls related to the renovation project.
The anecdote is one of several included in Regime Change describing Trump’s interest in redesigning the White House and other landmarks in Washington.
Since returning to office, Trump has overseen a series of changes to the executive mansion. Among the most visible was paving over much of the Rose Garden to create a patio that critics and supporters alike have compared to the outdoor spaces at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
He has also added gold accents throughout the Oval Office and other areas of the White House. Swan and Haberman report that some decorative elements were even attached by Trump himself using superglue.
The renovations extend beyond the Oval Office. The administration has moved forward with plans for a large ballroom on the White House grounds, a project that has drawn legal challenges, while other construction efforts in Washington, including changes to the Reflecting Pool area, have also attracted attention.
Swan said there is a common thread tying the projects together.
“He’s really just trying to put his imprint on Washington, D.C., in a permanent, durable way,” he said.
The reported interruption offers another example of how Trump’s personal involvement in White House renovations has at times intersected with the day-to-day business of the presidency—even during meetings involving sensitive national security matters.
Watch the clip below from CNN:
Jonathan Swan says Trump is spending an “enormous amount of time” on WH renovations. They report stone samples were brought in during a classified meeting and Trump was once seen “super gluing a gold applique onto the fireplace” in the oval office. pic.twitter.com/DtPiK8qq7n
— Erin Burnett OutFront (@OutFrontCNN) July 10, 2026
