Could photos of Trump’s Oval Office explain why his casino empire collapsed?
Some people think so, and the internet can’t stop talking about it.
Didn’t last forever
Love him or hate him, Donald Trump’s history as a businessman has always made headlines. According to Trump himself, he’s been a wildly successful real estate mogul – but not everyone agrees on that.
Long before his White House days, Trump made his first appearance on The Forbes 400 list in 1982, sharing a $200 million fortune with his father, Fred. (Trump, of course, insisted their net worth was actually closer to $500 million.)
Over the next decade, he built a casino empire along Atlantic City’s iconic boardwalk, opening the Trump Plaza Hotel in 1984, Trump’s Castle — later renamed Trump Marina — a year later, and finally the colossal Trump Taj Mahal Casino in 1990.
But the empire didn’t last forever. Trump Entertainment Resorts filed for bankruptcy not once, not twice, but three times between 2004 and 2014.
By 2016, most of Trump’s casinos had shut down. Some found new owners, but others were left to rot, leaving a stretch of empty, crumbling buildings along Atlantic City’s boardwalk—a stark reminder of the rise and fall of his casino empire.
In 2021, the notorious Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino, one of the crown jewels of his Atlantic City ventures, was finally imploded.
Trump’s view on gold
Fast forward, and Trump, now the 47th president of the United States, has left his unmistakable mark on the White House, most notably in the Oval Office.
For anyone who’s watched Trump’s press conferences, it’s no secret — the room is absolutely drenched in gold. During a March tour of the Oval Office with Fox News host Laura Ingraham, Trump explained that the room “needed a little life” when discussing the gold details.
“Throughout the years, people have tried to come up with a gold paint that would look like gold, and they’ve never been able to do it,” Trump told Ingraham. “You’ve never been able to match gold with gold paint, that’s why it’s gold,” he added.
From fixtures and fittings to ornaments, picture frames, and even the ceiling, the space is a far cry from Joe Biden’s more subdued, all-white office.
“You see the way this is looking nice? I can’t tell you how much that gold costs — a lot of money. There’s nothing like gold, and there’s nothing like solid gold,” Trump said recently, pointing out his favorite color dominates the decor.
Footed the bill himself
Nowadays, the well-known office is packed with memorabilia. On the fireplace, trophies sit amid gold-plated trinkets — including a replica of the FIFA World Cup trophy, after Trump’s request to keep the real one was denied.
Some say it gives off “Harry Potter vault in Gringotts” vibes.
A White House spokesperson told Fox News that the gold used in Trump’s Oval Office “is of the highest quality,” but declined to share any further specifics. They also confirmed that Trump personally footed the bill for the gold accents, though it remains unclear exactly how much gold was added or how much he spent.
Plans are also in motion to revamp the East Wing with a $200 million ballroom, and the Rose Garden’s signature green center has been partially paved over. Critics, however, argue that his taste in decor says a lot about his history with bankruptcies.
Sharing before-and-after photos of the Oval Office, podcaster Brian Allen tweeted:
“Not hard to see how he bankrupted so many casinos. These are the same rooms btw.”
Other commenters agreed, comparing the lavish touches to over-the-top retail theatrics:
“Reverent dignity replaced with gaudy insecurity,” wrote one.
Another added: “Countless critical meetings have been held there. It is a place of work, not a leisure palace or a gaudy casino.”
A third quipped: “Looks like a fire sale at Poundland.”
”It was dirty, not clean”
Some, however, offered a milder defense of the makeover. “I’m sorry but the picture on the left looks like it was taken in a funeral home. I do think he did go a little overboard on the gold but it was an improvement,” one user noted.
Trump himself defended the changes, insisting the previous decor was far from suitable. He told reporters the Oval Office was “dirty” when he moved in, and one of the first things he did was swap out the chair behind the Resolute Desk that Joe Biden had used.
“When we took it over, it was dirty, not clean,” he said. “I immediately changed the chair and had this beautiful desk renovated… This was not appropriate for the Oval Office when I took over.”
Love it or hate it, Trump’s gold-soaked Oval Office is impossible to ignore.
Some say it’s a window into his personality, his flair for the dramatic — and maybe even a hint at why his casinos went under. But what do you think: a bold display of style, or a sign of the same over-the-top taste that sank his casino empire?