From Oval to awful

How Trump brought some totally unneeded bling to the West Wing.

- BY CHRISTOPHER BUCKTIN

DONALD Trump has been accused of turning the White House into a gaudy palace dripping with bling, with Washington insiders branding it "Versailles meets Vegas".

From golden cherubs and tacky umbrellas to 100ft flagpoles, a £148million ballroom and giant paintings of himself, the 47th President has remodelled America's most famous home in his own image: flashy, brash, and obsessed with Donald J Trump.

What was once the People's House now bears all the hallmarks of Mara-Lago, his Florida resort famed for chandeliers, mirrors and enough gold leaf to sink a ship. The historic Rose Garden, once the site of JFK's Cold War speeches and Ronald Reagan's press briefings, has been ripped up.

In its place: tiled flooring that looks more "hotel lobby" than history. Trump has been obsessing about paving the space all year. "The slabs of the Rose Garden have been the subject of almost daily discussions," said one report.

Aides say the reality TV star, 79, even justified the makeover by claiming grass was "bad for women in heels".

Critics, however, say it's reduced the nation's most symbolic garden to something resembling a Holiday Inn patio.

This week, musician Jack White launched a blistering attack on Trump's garish makeover. The former White Stripes frontman, 50, turned his fire on the President after Trump's Oval Office meeting with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday.