A White House Press Room Pool? Trump Rejects That Idea While Leaving Open a Move for Reporters
by Jerome London · Thought CatalogUpdated 3 minutes ago, October 26, 2026
President Donald Trump left open the possibility of relocating White House reporters in an Oct. 24 social media post: “I may move the Fake News to a less obnoxious location.”
He denied a report that he wanted to replace the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room with a historic swimming pool, saying he’d never “even thought to do such a stupid thing.”
The reported proposal dated to August. Trump had urged then-press secretary Karoline Leavitt to move news conferences out of the briefing room, an idea that wasn’t carried out.
He reportedly told aides he’d prefer the indoor therapy pool installed during Franklin D. Roosevelt’s administration. Under Richard Nixon, the space became the press briefing room.
The possible relocation follows a separate fight over journalists’ access. Trump’s September ban temporarily kept journalists from CNN, MS NOW and Politico off White House grounds. At the same time, he threatened to impose similar restrictions on other outlets. Free speech advocates said the ban violated the First Amendment’s protections for a free press.
Their access was restored after a federal judge found the ban likely unconstitutional and ordered it lifted. The administration’s still contesting the case.
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