The White House is making security-focused upgrades to its front door at the North Portico, a project expected to take months and represent the first substantial structural fortification of the historic entrance in decades. A White House official told CNN the changes, which sources said have long been advocated by the US Secret Service, are aimed at fortifying the entrance where the president greets world leaders and hosts state dinners.
Workers have already begun the work, installing scaffolding and a photorealistic tarp around the North Portico columns. The tarp displays an image of the portico as it will appear after upgrades, creating an optical illusion that obscures the ongoing construction from public view. The fortifications are expected to be complete by approximately mid-September, according to the White House official.
The project involves stone repair work on the columns, which Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said would proceed “very quickly.” Burgum told podcaster Katie Miller that Trump observed damage to the pillars and ordered repairs, including restoration of plaster work that extends “all the way up to the crowns of those towers.” During a recent media availability, Trump claimed crews had “taken about 150 years of paint off of the columns and re-did them” after they were “in very bad shape.”
The security enhancements come as Trump has faced multiple assassination attempts. In April 2026, a gunman breached security at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner at the Washington Hilton, and last month an alleged plot to attack a UFC fight on the White House South Lawn was uncovered. Officials have pointed to these incidents as justification for the president’s broader security upgrades, including a planned 90,000-square-foot ballroom project that they say will include a sophisticated drone port, sniper nests, and a secure underground bunker.
Unlike many of Trump’s other White House projects—from gold signage to Rose Garden renovations—the North Portico work is focused on security rather than aesthetics, the White House official emphasized. The US Secret Service did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the fortification specifics.
Sources
- CNN — reported that security-focused upgrades are aimed at fortifying the North Portico entrance, with changes long advocated by the US Secret Service
- WAAY 31 News — confirmed the fortifications are expected to be complete by mid-September and detailed the security focus of the project
- The Independent — described the photorealistic tarp covering and reported Interior Secretary Burgum’s comments about the restoration work
- Forbes — reported that the work involves stone repair in the columns and that a White House official told CNN the North Portico is undergoing standard restoration work
