President Donald Trump’s paved-over Rose Garden is infested with bugs, his MAGA buddy Dana White has revealed.
Trump, 79, tore out the grass of the historic Rose Garden last year as part of his broader Mar-a-Lago-style makeover of the White House.
But the revamped space failed to impress White, the CEO and president of Ultimate Fighting Championship, who is planning to put on a UFC Fight Night on the White House lawn in June to celebrate the president’s 80th and America’s 250th birthday.
“President Trump just opened the Rose Garden two nights ago, and he invited me to dinner there. The amount of gnats that were flying around. I’m like, ‘Holy s--t,’” White said on the Boardroom podcast on Monday.
White, a longtime supporter of the president, suggested the insect problem at Trump’s residence was so out of control that it threatened the UFC event altogether.
“As soon as I got on the plane, I called my head of production and said, ‘Yeah, let me tell you about the gnat situation tonight,’” the 56-year-old said. “So when you’re a fighter, think about that lighting grid, the amount of power in the lights… moths, gnats, and God knows what else.”
White said he suggested installing fans around the venue because “gnats have a hard time in the wind.”
“These are all the little details that we have to think about,” he added. “That’s why I don’t like fighting outside. Ever.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump has high hopes for his birthday event, telling reporters he expects 5,000 spectators to watch the UFC fight at an arena on the White House’s South Lawn, adjacent to the Rose Garden.
“I think it’s gonna be the biggest event we’ve ever had at the White House,” he said earlier this month.
The former real estate developer bulldozed the Rose Garden in June of last year, later claiming it was necessary because women had trouble walking in high heels on the wet grass.
While speaking to attendees at a dinner hosted at the garden last week, Trump branded the White House a “s--t house.”
“This place was not properly taken care of,” he said, gesturing to his surroundings. “I was told by my wife, ‘You have to act presidential, so don’t use foul language.‘ I won’t, therefore.”
He continued, “Normally I would have said it was a s--t house. But I don’t want to say that.”
Trump—who has festooned the White House in gold and destroyed the historic East Wing to make way for his ballroom project—went on to say that he is “bringing the White House back to shape.”
