Our nation’s capital — Trump’s sandbox

Zohran Mamdani (D), New York’s new mayor, is one of the state’s most powerful politicians, arguably even more powerful than Gov. Kathy Hochul (D). But imagine what would happen if Mamdani changed the name of Rockefeller Center to “Zohran Mamdani Rockefeller Center,” shut down Lincoln Center for two years, painted the Empire State Building white, draped buildings in Times Square with his mug, and drained Central Park’s reservoir to paint the bottom a different color.

Protestors would fill the streets. The governor would send in the National Guard. The city council and New York Assembly would pass legislation to stop him. Workers from all unions would unite to shut the city down. And Mamdani would be out of office in a New York minute.

Yet President Trump is doing all of that and more to our great nation’s capital and getting away with it.

Starting on Day One of his second term, Trump has treated Washington as his personal property, where he has the power to change or destroy anything he doesn’t like. For him, Washington is nothing but a sandbox which he can retreat to whenever he’s bored with deporting immigrants or waging war, and play “Donnie the Developer.”

Only 17 months into his second term, he has already radically changed the capital. It is not the same city it was when Trump returned to the White House in January 2025. He has slapped his name on historic buildings. The Institute of Peace is now the “Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace.” The renowned Kennedy........

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