Trump pushes White House North Portico restoration as Xi visit approaches

Trump’s White House North Portico project nears completion

Restoration work on the White House North Portico appears to be nearing completion before Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to the United States in late September, according to the Associated Press.

Scaffolding was being taken down Tuesday after workers over Labor Day weekend removed a shroud that had obscured the work. The Executive Mansion’s front columns had been covered since July, and the work ordered by President Donald Trump began in June.

Administration officials said previously that stonework and plaster on the structure were being refurbished because of routine damage from age and weather exposure. Trump has said he noticed the “deplorable condition” himself before insisting on repairs.

White House overhauls and the Xi Jinping state visit

The portico work is part of the president’s sweeping overhaul of the White House and other federal property in the nation’s capital, with most of his more ambitious moves drawing lawsuits and criticism from historic preservationists. Trump said last week that workers finished construction of a helipad on the South Lawn.

Meanwhile, his signature project, a White House ballroom and underground bunker, continues as legal fights play out. Multiple lawsuits were filed after Trump demolished the East Wing before going through the usual regulatory steps for major work on historic federal buildings in Washington. The massive project will add more square footage than what the existing White House footprint comprises.

That means Trump must host Xi’s state dinner, scheduled for Sept. 24, in existing spaces and in a construction zone — a circumstance that will afford the president a new opportunity to extol his ballroom project.

Diplomatic updates involving Trump, Putin, and Zelenskyy

Russian President Vladimir Putin assured U.S. President Donald Trump in a phone call Tuesday that Moscow doesn’t harbor aggressive tendencies toward Europe, a senior Kremlin official said, after European officials expressed concern about Russian sabotage campaigns on their soil.

Yuri Ushakov, Putin’s foreign affairs adviser, told reporters that “in view of the speculation about Russia’s alleged hostile intentions toward European countries, it was underlined that we don’t have any aggressive plans regarding Europe.” Ushakov also said Putin told Trump about the combat situation in Ukraine and Russia’s plans to make battlefield gains and achieve its military goals.

Also Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that U.S. Envoys who visited Kyiv presented some “very good, worthwhile ideas” for ending Russia’s 4 1/2-year-old war, adding that he hopes to meet with President Donald Trump within two weeks. Zelenskyy said he is counting on meeting with Trump around Sept. 20 — about the same time that the U.N. General Assembly is being held in New York.

U.S. Envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff visited Moscow and Kyiv for separate talks with Putin and Zelenskyy over the weekend. Zelenskyy thanked U.S. Officials for their efforts to unblock negotiations with Russia, which have been stuck since early this year with little progress.

As construction projects and diplomatic talks continue to unfold in Washington and abroad, preparations remain underway for the upcoming state visit and ongoing international negotiations.