President Donald Trump has ordered the official portraits of former Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush, and George H.W. Bush moved from their prominent positions in the White House’s Grand Foyer to a secluded stairwell leading to the private residence — an area closed to the public.
Sources told CNN the Obama portrait, painted by Robert McCurdy, now hangs at the top of the Grand Staircase, far from the thousands of visitors who pass through on tours. The Bush portraits were also relocated to the same restricted space.
The move breaks with White House tradition, which places recent presidents’ portraits in the mansion’s main entryway for public display. The shift follows months of escalating tensions between Trump and Obama, including Trump’s recent accusation that Obama committed “treason” during the 2016 election — a claim Obama’s office called “outrageous” and “bizarre.”
Trump has also clashed with the Bush family for years. Both Bush presidents have criticized him, and George W. Bush skipped Trump’s 2025 post-inauguration luncheon.
The Obama portrait had already been moved in April to make room for a painting of Trump surviving an assassination attempt. The White House and the White House Historical Association have not commented.
