President Donald Trump is planning to install a statue of Christopher Columbus on White House grounds, according to three people with knowledge of the pending move, in his latest effort to remake the presidential campus and celebrate the famed and controversial explorer.
The statue is set to be located on the south side of the grounds, by E Street and north of the Ellipse, two of the people said, although they cautioned that plans could change. The three people spoke on the condition of anonymity to recount private discussions. The piece is a reconstruction of a statue unveiled in Baltimore by President Ronald Reagan and dumped in the city’s harbor by protesters in 2020 as a racial reckoning swept the country.
