New Delhi: US President Donald Trump has rewritten American presidential history in a controversial overhaul of the White House’s Presidential Walk of Fame, with newly installed plaques on Wednesday mocking his Democratic predecessors.
The redesigned display near the Oval Office features plaques below presidential portraits that reflect Trump’s world-view, though several descriptions are factually misleading.
Trump’s predecessor Joe Biden has been denied a portrait altogether—instead, an auto-pen device represents the former president.
Biden is branded the “worst president” in American history on the plaque. It also describes the 2020 election, which Biden won, as the “most corrupt election ever seen in the US”.
“Biden oversaw a series of unprecedented disasters that brought our nation to the brink of destruction. His policies caused the highest Inflation ever recorded, leading to the US Dollar to lose more than 20% of its value in 4 years,” the plaque reads.
A second plaque adds: “Nicknamed both ‘Sleepy’ and ‘Crooked’, Joe Biden was dominated by his Radical Left handlers. They and their allies in the fake news media attempted to cover up his severe mental decline, and his unprecedented use of the autopen.”
Auto-pen is a device that reproduces a person’s signature. Trump has repeatedly attacked Biden for his use of the auto-pen, going so far as to claim that all documents signed by the former President using the device were legally void.
Barack Obama, the US’s first African-American President, is labelled “one of the most-divisive” leaders in American history. This is despite opinion polls showing Obama as the most favourable living American leader.
The White House has added these plaques to their “Presidential Walk of Fame” – the Biden & Obama entries are heavy on Trumpian mockery. Reagan’s notes that he was “a fan” of President Trump long before he ran for Pres. pic.twitter.com/m8wAxw3Jwt
— Garrett Haake (@GarrettHaake) December 17, 2025
A Gallup poll from earlier this year, conducted between January 21-27 – the week after Trump’s inauguration for his second term – showed Obama with a 59% favourability rating, significantly higher than Trump’s 48% at the time. Even George W Bush, who led the US into wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, polled higher than Trump, at 52%, according to the poll.
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The plaques mirror Trump’s Truth Social posts, complete with mid-sentence capitalisation of words. The Presidential Walk of Fame originally featured straightforward portraits of former presidents before Trump’s redesign. The overhaul is part of Trump’s broader White House renovation project, which includes gilded fittings and plans to build a grand ballroom in place of the East Wing.
Trump’s attacks on predecessors came as he addressed the nation from the White House on Wednesday, defending his 11-month record. The President faces mounting domestic pressure after the Republican Party lost a series of state and local elections last month over affordability concerns.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defended his descriptions on the plaques as “eloquent”.
“As a student of history, many [descriptions] were written directly by the President himself,” she said.
Other plaques also reflect Trump’s historical interpretations. Gerald R Ford’s re-election loss to Jimmy Carter is attributed to his “brave pardon of Richard Nixon”. Carter’s legacy is minimised, with the plaque noting he became better known for his work for “humanity” after leaving office.
Similarly, Bill Clinton’s successes are credited to a “Republican-led Congress”, while a line also mentions his wife and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton’s loss to Trump in the 2016 presidential election.
Andrew Johnson, who succeeded Abraham Lincoln, and is considered by historians as one of America’s less popular presidents, receives a sympathetic portrayal. His plaque argues that “Abraham Lincoln was a very hard act to follow.”
Meanwhile, Andrew Jackson is described as “unjustifiably treated unfairly by the Press”.
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