In July, First Lady Melania Trump decided to tear up the White House rose garden in order to leave her mark on the White House in a more permanent fashion.
The historic garden was planted by First Lady's before her, with some rose bushes being over 100 years old. It was famously redesigned by Jackie Kennedy, who left the rose bushes planted by her predecessors during her renovations.
Trump removed colorful roses and flowers to change the garden to just white and pale pink and added a custom platform and lighting apparatus—essentially turning the once historic area into a stage for her husband which drew the public's ire.
Now, the redesigned garden is dying.
Shocker! She made a set for her speech. That's all @FLOTUS cared about in the first place. Poor drainage seems a fitting description of what happens behind the “scene".
— “The Honorable" Ask Expect (@AskExpect) September 8, 2020
Every first Lady planted a rose bush. Melania tore them out for nothing.
— tarawatson1665@gmail 🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊 (@Pixie1665) September 8, 2020
They renovations were rushed, something like this was bound to happen. Melania Trump took a perfectly good garden and screwed it up. Screwed up so bad, they had to use astro turf during the RNC convention.
To repair drainage problems, the garden has to be torn up...again
— Jim The Great (@Jim_Blancato) September 8, 2020
The most upsetting change for many was the First Lady's ripping up of ten healthy crab apple trees planted by Jackie Kennedy as a nod to history and her husband's New England roots.
The trees framed the area, providing shade and protection by blocking line of sight.
Melania destroying the Rose Garden #WasntOnMy2020BingoCard pic.twitter.com/U8in2MoyaE
— Dan Gerous, Inc.🐷😷 (@Anythingpork) September 4, 2020
omg thats what she did to it? the ghosts of several first ladies should haunt her.
— Mad Anne flint (@Mad_Anne_Flint) September 4, 2020
Every first Lady planted a rose bush. Melania tore them out for nothing.
— tarawatson1665@gmail 🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊 (@Pixie1665) September 8, 2020
Just three weeks ago on August 22, Melania threw a party for her revamped garden. It has turned out to be a premature celebration.
The once beautiful garden is dying and water logged because of her rushed renovations.
A source familiar with the White House garden woes told CNN that the new rose garden was already having "issues with water drainage" and "some minor complications with updated construction."
The "drain the swamp" President and his wife have now accomplished turning the White House rose garden into just that, a swamp.
The schadenfreude was real on Twitter.
So basically, it's turning into a swamp.
Fitting.
— Current Mood (@kantw8240) September 8, 2020
Sometimes there truly is no better feeling in the world than Schadenfreude 😂😂😂
— Stacy G (@StacyGrubb73) September 8, 2020
This is what Melanie gets for chopping up Jackie Kennedys Rose Garden #MelaniaTapes pic.twitter.com/iuQXz3WJod
— Dawn and Kevin (@DawnandKevin1) September 2, 2020
During the Republican National Convention the south lawn and garden were so damaged by the lack of drainage that fake turf had to be rolled out to make the area useable until new sod could replace the destroyed lawns.
Twitter users saw the garden issues reflective of other problems with the Trumps.
Not much diversity, just lots of lots of whites.
— Jacob Besh (@TheBeshAround) September 4, 2020
Just like everything that comes from Trump: poorly conceived, badly planned, and incompetently executed.#TrumpSwamp #Swump
— K Bedmas (@Mathematasian) September 8, 2020
Renovation went about as well as Melania's modeling career. We saw a little bush and it was over. @FLOTUS https://t.co/xKvmawcsEY
— NoelCaslerComedy (@CaslerNoel) September 8, 2020
@TheRickWilson
Of course it is because it isn't just @realDonaldTrump that has the ETTD effect but the whole clan.
— NC_Transplant (@NC_Mom_of_Pugs) September 8, 2020
Typical. Oh and may I please see visual confirmation that Trump re-election campaign is footing the bill for the damages they caused
— Sharon Kehoe (@SharonKehoe6) September 9, 2020
Trump campaign Press secretary Judd Deere told CNN that:
"The sod is being replaced at no cost to taxpayers."
Although no documentation has been released to show the total cost of the second garden overhaul or that tax payers are not paying the bill to drain the swamp Melania Trump created.
We won't hold our breath.
@elektrotimmy/X
