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President Donald Trump isn’t done transforming one of the nation’s most iconic buildings into an active construction site and expecting Americans to foot the bill. The front doors of the White House, which face toward Lafayette Park and pedestrian traffic, are currently undergoing security improvements, as repairs are made to the iconic columns on the North Portico, CBS News reported Friday. On Friday, tarps were spotted on the front of the White House’s North Portico, printed with images of what the structure should look like while renovations carry on underneath. This is just the most recent renovation project the White House has undertaken without approval from Congress, which is required to approve any construction on federal land. For months, Trump has treated the White House—which belongs to all Americans, not just the president—like one of his gaudy resort properties.Last month, Trump began construction on a helipad in the South Lawn without any official notice. At the same time, the Trump administration moved to renovate the White House’s South Portico and re-top the driveway. The White House later demanded the contractor speed up the project’s timeline, adding $875,000 to the already $13 million price tag. The contractor’s documents showed that the company received a last-minute demand to complete construction by mid-September in anticipation of an “upcoming state visit.” The request was made just days after Trump invited Chinese President Xi Jinping to visit the White House on September 24. The North Portico project is also estimated to be completed around mid-September.Trump claimed that Sikorsky, a subsidiary of Lockheed Martin that builds Marine One helicopters, would cover the cost of a $5 million or $6 million helipad—but it seems likely that American taxpayers will pick up the tab for the rest of his construction. That wasn’t the first time that the budget for one of the president’s renovations has exploded. Trump originally claimed that his White House ballroom project would only cost $200 million and wouldn’t touch the original building. But Trump then demolished the White House’s East Wing, and the cost of construction ballooned to $300 million, and then $400 million after he decided to tack on extra building. Last month, a bombshell report revealed that taxpayers would actually be responsible for half of a $600 million price tag. But there’s reason to be concerned about the former slumlord’s various construction projects: Just look at the president’s toxic Reflecting Pool or his crumbling venue for the Fourth of July!

A federal judge handed President Trump two new losses in his war against whatever he perceives as diversity, equity, and inclusion.U.S. District Judge William Orrick issued a preliminary injunction to freeze Trump’s effort to place anti-DEI conditions on federal grants in multiple cities in Oregon and California, ruling that the move overstepped Congress’s power of the purse.Grants at risk due to Trump’s move include those that deal with assistance for victims of domestic violence and human trafficking, disaster relief efforts, terrorism preparedness, and “a range of initiatives designed to expand and strengthen services for crime victims, including funding specialized assistance for children, elders, and victims of technology-facilitated abuse.”“Plaintiffs maintain that ‘[n]othing in the Constitution or federal statutes authorizes Defendants to impose the Challenged Conditions, or anything of the kind, on funds administered through congressional grant programs,’” Orrick wrote. “I agree.”This is at least the third time in recent weeks that Trump has had an anti-DEI measure temporarily struck down by the courts.

Managing partner Penny Pennington wants to capture financial advisers’ insights before they retire.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth cut off a safety investigation into eight National Guard pilots who were suspended after they used military helicopters to buzz a crowded beach. Crowds gathered to celebrate the Fourth of July on the coast of South Carolina were treated to a “Salute to the Shore” demonstration, featuring low-flying Apache helicopters manned by members of the South Carolina Army National Guard. But the moment that the officers landed, they all received notice that they had been suspended, ABC15 reported. In a statement, Maj. Lisa Allen confirmed that the officers were suspended pending an investigation into possible safety violations that occurred during their demonstration. She said she could not provide further details or speculate on any specific allegations, but she stressed that the suspension was “not punitive.”“A temporary suspension from flight duties is a routine administrative measure whenever a flight profile is under review,” she said.MAGA was abuzz over the fact that no reason had been given—and it caught the eye of Hegseth. “We’ll fix this. Carry on, Patriots,” Hegseth wrote in a post on X Thursday. The next day, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell announced that “effective immediately, the suspension of all involved South Carolina pilots has been lifted.”This isn’t the first time Hegseth has personally intervened to get officers out of trouble. He previously reinstated two suspended pilots who’d decided to fly their helicopters around Kid Rock’s house during a No Kings protest in March.