President Donald Trump has openly thirsted for a “real” golden palace.
The 80-year-old is heading to the Palace of Versailles for dinner with French President Emmanuel Macron after next week’s G7 summit, and for a man who has spent his presidency surrounding himself with gold, the invitation clearly hit differently.
Trump and Macron’s governments confirmed the dinner plans on Saturday, to take place after the summit in the French lakeside town of Evian-les-Bains. Trump, who is holding a series of one-on-one meetings with foreign leaders on the summit’s sidelines as he works toward an Iran war deal, was asked about the Versailles invitation and did not hold back.
“I’m a fan of beautiful places,” he said on Tuesday. “And I was leaving in the afternoon, and then the French president, who happens to be a very nice man, invited me to dinner at Versailles. And Versailles is not a gold leaf. Versailles is the real deal. And I said, I’d like to do it.”
He added, for reassurance, “All it means is that I get home later in the evening, meaning early in the morning, and I’m not a big sleeper anyway. I’ll be in the Oval Office very... I won’t, I won’t lose any time in the Oval Office.”
The comment about “gold leaf” versus the “real deal” was telling. Since January 2025, Trump has been methodically transforming the Oval Office into what critics have called a gilded fever dream—adding gold-plated moldings, frames, mirrors, cherubs, eagles, coasters, and ornamental designs to its doors, bookcases, and fireplace.
The makeover was carried out largely by Trump’s personal “gold guy,” a Florida-based decorator named John Icart, who did similar work at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate and was flown to Washington on Air Force One to handle the job.
Trump told Fox News last year that the Oval Office “needed a little life,” and that he opted for gold because of its spiritual associations. “They say angels bring good luck,” he said. “And we need a lot of luck in this country with what they have done over the last four years.”
The gold has kept coming. Apple CEO Tim Cook and FIFA president Gianni Infantino have both presented Trump with golden gifts, which now sit in the Oval. During King Charles’ state visit in April, the British ambassador gave Trump a large gold-framed coin to mark the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. The king himself gave the president a gilded bell from a submarine named the HMS Trump.
The renovation has expanded outward. Golden signage and embellishments now line the corridor outside the Oval Office. Renderings of Trump’s planned $400 million East Wing ballroom show golden chandeliers throughout. His triumphal arch, designed to mark the nation’s 250th anniversary, features gold accents, two golden eagles, and a gold-leafed winged Lady Liberty.
While he waits for those projects to be completed, Trump has a 15-foot bronze statue of himself—coated in gold leaf—on display at his National Doral Miami golf club, unveiled ahead of the PGA Tour’s Cadillac Championship in April.
Not everyone is charmed by the accumulation. Richard Painter, who served as chief ethics lawyer under President George W. Bush, told the Daily Beast that a gold Rolex desk clock and a one-kilogram gold bar given to Trump by a Swiss business consortium just one week before he cut tariffs for Switzerland should trigger a congressional investigation.
“It just gives the appearance of a bribe,” Painter said. “I’m not saying it is a bribe… but to avoid the appearance of bribery and corruption, presidents almost always refuse gifts.”
