” The imagery of siege is now being reinforced by real incidents, while the real incidents are being folded back into an increasingly fortified political narrative.”
“The result is a presidency that increasingly projects itself not as an open civic institution, but as a permanently threatened stronghold.”
” The walls get taller. The security systems become more visible. The architecture grows more grandiose. And the political imagery surrounding the White House begins to resemble less a public residence than a fortress built for an era of permanent instability.”
accountabilitycounts on
The White House is not the president. If he illegally occupies the White House, his replacement can run things from an alternate location.
SuddenNothing6266 on
The dumbest President ever in the history of mankind…even old days narcissist kings were better than orange felon
AINonsense on
From here, it looks exactly like a hole in the ground.
TheDudeBeto on
Every day reality reminds me more of the Civil War movie plot.
good4y0u on
Let’s all just hope he still leaves at the end of his constitutionally limited final term.
forthewatch39 on
He really is living in the past, but a past that was gone long before he existed. This isn’t the olden days where you could barricade yourself in a castle forever. If it comes to needing to use force to remove him, then it doesn’t matter how many defenses he puts up, he will be ousted.
ErinFiqsette on
A bunker.
YourShowerCompanion on
Will there be giant vertical flag banners draped over the building? and giant search lights pointing at them?
robocreator on
I’m quite sure that when he passes away… this will all wither away anyways. There is no stopping time.
angrypooka on
Remember at the end of his last term when he had fencing around the White House?
E1M1_DOOM on
For a party that loves the nazis so much, they sure are forgetting how well a bunker worked out for their favorite fascist.
obxhead on
All fascists build bunkers. It the one thing every one of them has in common.
1000AdamantAdams on
I think its more like a tribute to himself that happens to be overseen by the American Secret Service.
734576788653454356 on
The birth of the cheetobunker.
Bakedfresh420 on
The fortress is under the ballroom, this was reported quite a while ago. “Starting” lmfao, get out of here salon dot com
VirtuaFighter6 on
Hmmmm, why would he do that?
ocwilly on
More like a man cave for demented felons!
Arctimon on
A fortress meant to keep one person in the bunker. Him.
Thirty_Helens_Agree on
Germans seem to have a word for everything. I wonder if they have a word for this?
BadAtExisting on
Anyone else watch A24’s Civil War and was confused how the war started and what the back story was? Starting to feel like we’re finding out in real time
kezow on
That protest outside the white house REALLY scared him. You remember, the one where he evacuated to the bunker and asked if he could shoot the protesters?
ClaroStar on
He’s just trying to do as many things as possible before he leaves that the Democrats can’t reverse. What an insane system. I hope the Democrats learn an do the same to implement things like a universal, single-payer healthcare system. Just cram it through, no questions asked.
bananajr6000 on
The military has already abandoned their oath
MetalMamaRocks on
Why does he need this? What are his plans?? I think we know.
mistertickertape on
At the end of the day, the White House is a building. It’s a symbolic, beautiful, building filled with our nations history but it is a building. I won’t be one bit surprised if Trump attempts to demolish it before leaving or if he refuses to leave and forces the next administration to remove him. He’s a pig, it is in his nature.
OneTwoFar_ on
To keep him safe from potential angry mobs
opinionsareus on
Trump is a hater who has so divided Americans that he has put everyone associated with him or related to him in potential danger. Authoritarianism ultimately turns to paranoia, and for good reason.
Rare-Bid-6860 on
“Starting to”.
Hey, you’re finally awake…
mabden on
Another indicator he does not plan on leaving.
DoTheMario on
Mad Kings need crazy walls around them
cat9tail on
Or… shall we call it a castle? Hmmmm????
ennuiinmotion on
He wants to have his own Versailles.
Klutzy-Tomatillo5600 on
It is a fortress.
Why don’t people get it??? Why would someone build something that won’t even be completed in time for them to benefit from?
Does Trump ever attend or get invited to ceremonies where other past presidents attend? I don’t think so.
He is building a fortress. A castle. Look at North Korea, the monuments he is building look awfully(and I mean AWFULLY) like Kim’s.
VanguardAvenger on
Well yeah.
Hes a terrified old pedophile. He doesn’t want to go outside into a world even he is still barely cognizant enough to realize hates him
Un1CornTowel on
I’m so sick of these “starting to” “heading towards” “looks like” “may result in”
My dudes — we’re there. We’re IN the fascist state. It’s here. They literally failed to get an indictment from a grand jury against their political opponent, i[ntentionally dismissed the jurors w](https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/05/21/prosecutors-closed-hearing-broadview-six/?share=thwvnprhpsns0w2i0swi)ho voted to no bill, re-ran it with a lawyer personally vouching for the credibility of the witnesses, got a true bill, refused to hand over the grand jury transcripts to a judge, then handed over partial copies, then handed over illegally redacted copies, then pretended like they were trying their best when they were caught red handed by the judge.
These are kangaroo courts to indefinitely imprison brown people and political dissidents. This is fascism, guys. We’re here. Act accordingly.
HaxanWriter on
It’s almost like he doesn’t plan on leaving…
Readgooder on
Mark my words. NOVEMBER 2028, Trump will go into his White House bunker and not come out.
SomeKindofTreeWizard on
why would a dictator do such a thing?
joseph775 on
Yeah, because he ain’t fucking leaving. No matter what the outcome of the election is, his fat ass is going to sit in a bunker and destroy the world with his corrupt supremes court and his “ proud boy” ICE officers.
NEOK53 on
So on January 20, 2029, he has to be dug out like a tick.
Honest_Series_8430 on
And MAGA supporters wonder why there are “No Kings” protests. Well, no Duh.
fake_insider on
Getting ready for the war he is going to start.
p00ki3l0uh00 on
It is, with his own militia. He is preparing for the coup and to never leave the white house. With it fortified, and his slush fund powered ICE militia he will never have to surrender power. Its been done in other countries. Just watch.
44 Comments
“Another [shooting](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/23/us/politics/white-house-shooting.html) near the White House this weekend appears to have reinforced something already visible throughout [Donald Trump](http://salon.com/topic/donald-trump)’s second presidency: the transformation of presidential security into both political message and governing aesthetic.”
“In recent weeks, Trump has promoted plans for a massive new White House [ballroom](https://www.salon.com/2026/04/26/cannot-be-built-fast-enough-trump-uses-shooting-to-stump-for-white-house-ballroom/) alongside references to upgraded drone protections, broader [security enhancements](https://www.salon.com/2026/05/01/trumps-ballroom-ploy-might-work-security-experts-say/) and AI-generated imagery depicting a towering “[Golden Dome](https://www.salon.com/2025/11/27/trumps-golden-dome-could-create-a-spiral-of-nuclear-escalation_partner/)” over Washington.”
” His social media [feeds](https://www.salon.com/2026/05/02/i-have-all-the-cards-trumps-late-night-posting-spree-features-new-ai-images/) increasingly blur the line between governance, architecture and fortress fantasy: giant protective systems, controlled ceremonial spaces, triumphant crowds and heavily curated images of power.”
” The imagery of siege is now being reinforced by real incidents, while the real incidents are being folded back into an increasingly fortified political narrative.”
“Trump’s response to Saturday’s shooting did not simply thank law enforcement or call for calm. Instead, he immediately [connected](https://www.salon.com/2026/04/26/cannot-be-built-fast-enough-trump-uses-shooting-to-stump-for-white-house-ballroom/) the violence to his broader vision of a more securitized presidential space — one built around controlled environments, physical barriers and visible protection systems.”
“The result is a presidency that increasingly projects itself not as an open civic institution, but as a permanently threatened stronghold.”
” The walls get taller. The security systems become more visible. The architecture grows more grandiose. And the political imagery surrounding the White House begins to resemble less a public residence than a fortress built for an era of permanent instability.”
The White House is not the president. If he illegally occupies the White House, his replacement can run things from an alternate location.
The dumbest President ever in the history of mankind…even old days narcissist kings were better than orange felon
From here, it looks exactly like a hole in the ground.
Every day reality reminds me more of the Civil War movie plot.
Let’s all just hope he still leaves at the end of his constitutionally limited final term.
He really is living in the past, but a past that was gone long before he existed. This isn’t the olden days where you could barricade yourself in a castle forever. If it comes to needing to use force to remove him, then it doesn’t matter how many defenses he puts up, he will be ousted.
A bunker.
Will there be giant vertical flag banners draped over the building? and giant search lights pointing at them?
I’m quite sure that when he passes away… this will all wither away anyways. There is no stopping time.
Remember at the end of his last term when he had fencing around the White House?
For a party that loves the nazis so much, they sure are forgetting how well a bunker worked out for their favorite fascist.
All fascists build bunkers. It the one thing every one of them has in common.
I think its more like a tribute to himself that happens to be overseen by the American Secret Service.
The birth of the cheetobunker.
The fortress is under the ballroom, this was reported quite a while ago. “Starting” lmfao, get out of here salon dot com
Hmmmm, why would he do that?
More like a man cave for demented felons!
A fortress meant to keep one person in the bunker. Him.
Germans seem to have a word for everything. I wonder if they have a word for this?
Anyone else watch A24’s Civil War and was confused how the war started and what the back story was? Starting to feel like we’re finding out in real time
That protest outside the white house REALLY scared him. You remember, the one where he evacuated to the bunker and asked if he could shoot the protesters?
He’s just trying to do as many things as possible before he leaves that the Democrats can’t reverse. What an insane system. I hope the Democrats learn an do the same to implement things like a universal, single-payer healthcare system. Just cram it through, no questions asked.
The military has already abandoned their oath
Why does he need this? What are his plans?? I think we know.
At the end of the day, the White House is a building. It’s a symbolic, beautiful, building filled with our nations history but it is a building. I won’t be one bit surprised if Trump attempts to demolish it before leaving or if he refuses to leave and forces the next administration to remove him. He’s a pig, it is in his nature.
To keep him safe from potential angry mobs
Trump is a hater who has so divided Americans that he has put everyone associated with him or related to him in potential danger. Authoritarianism ultimately turns to paranoia, and for good reason.
“Starting to”.
Hey, you’re finally awake…
Another indicator he does not plan on leaving.
Mad Kings need crazy walls around them
Or… shall we call it a castle? Hmmmm????
He wants to have his own Versailles.
It is a fortress.
Why don’t people get it??? Why would someone build something that won’t even be completed in time for them to benefit from?
Does Trump ever attend or get invited to ceremonies where other past presidents attend? I don’t think so.
He is building a fortress. A castle. Look at North Korea, the monuments he is building look awfully(and I mean AWFULLY) like Kim’s.
Well yeah.
Hes a terrified old pedophile. He doesn’t want to go outside into a world even he is still barely cognizant enough to realize hates him
I’m so sick of these “starting to” “heading towards” “looks like” “may result in”
My dudes — we’re there. We’re IN the fascist state. It’s here. They literally failed to get an indictment from a grand jury against their political opponent, i[ntentionally dismissed the jurors w](https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/05/21/prosecutors-closed-hearing-broadview-six/?share=thwvnprhpsns0w2i0swi)ho voted to no bill, re-ran it with a lawyer personally vouching for the credibility of the witnesses, got a true bill, refused to hand over the grand jury transcripts to a judge, then handed over partial copies, then handed over illegally redacted copies, then pretended like they were trying their best when they were caught red handed by the judge.
They’ve disappeared [tens of thousands of people ](https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/blog/ice-expanding-detention-system/)and are [flying them around so that they can’t file habeas cases](https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2025/sep/10/trump-globalx-airline-deportation-immigration). They’ve been told literally[ thousands of times ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=721CSlWI8ik)that their interpretation of their statutory authorization to indefinitely detain people is fucking nonsense, but they destroyed nationwide injunctions so they keep disobeying the courts anyway.
These are kangaroo courts to indefinitely imprison brown people and political dissidents. This is fascism, guys. We’re here. Act accordingly.
It’s almost like he doesn’t plan on leaving…
Mark my words. NOVEMBER 2028, Trump will go into his White House bunker and not come out.
why would a dictator do such a thing?
Yeah, because he ain’t fucking leaving. No matter what the outcome of the election is, his fat ass is going to sit in a bunker and destroy the world with his corrupt supremes court and his “ proud boy” ICE officers.
So on January 20, 2029, he has to be dug out like a tick.
And MAGA supporters wonder why there are “No Kings” protests. Well, no Duh.
Getting ready for the war he is going to start.
It is, with his own militia. He is preparing for the coup and to never leave the white house. With it fortified, and his slush fund powered ICE militia he will never have to surrender power. Its been done in other countries. Just watch.