WASHINGTON – Several rows of stage lights could be seen glistening above the West Wing’s colonial-style windows as the sun rose Friday as the White House atmosphere began to shift for the first time to a purely political location.
Behind the scenes this past week, campaign and convention staff began work on the White House’s South House lights, speakers, and set up a stage that would be used for President Donald Trump to deliver his acceptance speech as the President’s nominee. the Republican Party. Trucks brought in long metal poles and beams, and building materials were installed next to the Rose Garden.
It is unusual in modern politics for the White House to be used as the site of an explicit political event, with presidents of the past maintaining some boundaries between the presidency office and their bids for re-election.
Trump has been pushing for such norms for months – attacking Democratic rival Joe Biden from the Rose Garden and playing camper-style videos in the White House letter room – but his address for the time before the convention will be the most represent blatant boredom of the lines.
Suggesting the White House for its acceptance speech following the emergence of coronavirus cases forced it to cancel plans for a major congress in person, Trump said earlier this month that it “would be a very convenient location that “It would be by far the least expensive location. It would be very bad in terms of that great travel, safety with planes and everyone flying all over the place. I think that would be a very handy idea.”
But since the convention speech is a political activity, the cost of travel to deliver it would be borne by Trump’s campaign, not by taxpayers. The potential cost and inconvenience also did not stop Trump from making four other field trips this week for campaigns in Pennsylvania, Arizona, Minnesota and Wisconsin.
Most of the setup at the White House has been kept out of sight. The windows on a few French doors facing the Rose Garden that reporters can typically see through were covered. At one point Friday, the doors were briefly left open, providing a view of building materials and workers fearing.
Days of building on the grounds of the White House have increased the usual routine of the president himself. Trump could not take the Marine One helicopter to Andrews Air Force Base on Thursday, instead motorcading.
The layout of the stage with skylights turned out to be half the height of the White House and resembled that of an open-air music festival, with large speakers to the side. Unlike Biden, Trump is expected to have a visible live audience for his remarks that will include members of Congress.
At least one other convention speech will be made from the grounds of the White House, with First Lady Melania Trump expected to make her speech from the recently renovated Rose Garden. The nearby Trump Hotel will serve as a workspace for convention staff.
Trump had rushed to hold a personal convention, first in North Carolina and then in Florida, but abruptly canceled those plans just over 30 days before it was set to begin, sending staff scrambling to come up with an alternative plan. It was only on Monday that Trump announced that he had arranged himself at the White House for his speech.
The Trump campaign and the Republican National Committee have said they will reimburse the federal government for all taxpayers used.
White House staffers were quick to say last week that they had no involvement in planning the convention outside their office doors, and told reporters to send all questions to the Trump campaign.
These government employees are technically covered by the Hatch Act, which restricts the political activities that federal employees can engage in to ensure that federal policies are conducted in a non-partisan manner and to protect federal workers from political coercion.
After ethical concerns about the event were raised by members of Congress, Erica Hamrick, the deputy head of the Hatch Act Unit for the Office of Special Counsel, issued a memo saying there were no problems with Trump who provided his address to the White House since he and the vice president are not covered by the Hatch Act. But she did issue a warning to other employees involved in the incident.
“The president and vice president are not covered by any of the provisions of the Hatch Act. Under the Hatch Act, President Trump does not prohibit his RNC acceptance speech on White House grounds,” Hamrick wrote. “However, White House staff are provided with the Hatch Act so that there can be implications for the Hatch Act for those employees, depending on their level of involvement in the event and their position in the White House.”
She said employees may not be able to assist with or attend the procedures while on duty as if it were happening in a federal room or building. But the Hatch Act would not apply if the employees did so on their personal time and if the event was held on the lawn of the White House or during the stay.
It is an opinion that Trump advisers have embraced.
“I have helped in my personal capacity, and I will speak for myself,” said White House adviser Kellyanne Conway when asked what to expect from the convention. “I think you will see and hear from many Americans whose lives have been positively impacted and measurable and changed as a result of the efforts and policies of President Trump and Vice President Pence.”
Monica Alba contributed.
