{"id":5124,"date":"2026-08-21T07:36:16","date_gmt":"2026-08-21T07:36:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=5124"},"modified":"2026-08-21T07:36:16","modified_gmt":"2026-08-21T07:36:16","slug":"trump-caught-using-taxpayer-cash-for-bizarre-paving-obsession","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=5124","title":{"rendered":"Trump caught using taxpayer cash for bizarre paving obsession"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Under Trump, the National Park Service has allowed thousands of park projects across the country languish while only the handful that he considers to be priorities have been fast-tracked, wrote The Atlantic’s Michael Scherer on Thursday.<\/p>\n

Read more Bill O\u2019Reilly predicts death of Trump\u2019s \u2018legacy\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

Citing internal documents and interviews, Scherer reported that Secretary of Interior Doug Burgum has established a “White House priorities” docket that pushed pavers for Lafayette Park, removing a golf course fence and gilding equestrian statues near Memorial Bridge. By contrast, he has delayed indefinitely more than 1,500 projects including an archaeological survey of the Civil War-era Camp Nelson National Monument and building wildfire-resistant dumpsters.<\/p>\n

In addition to these projects suffering because of deliberate deprioritization, the Department of Government Efficiency has cut staffing so severely that even matters that might be addressed as a matter of routine are neglected due to a lack of resources, Scherer added. By contrast, the White House insists on prioritizing a $25 million helicopter replacement, landscaping near Camp David and drones for regional law enforcement.<\/p>\n

“Trump continues to add more projects to the list\u2014or expand projects already on it,” Scherer continued. “Take, for example, the brick pavers in Lafayette Park outside the White House gates. In May, Trump said that the park renovation would be funded by ‘a contribution that I made,’ even though internal documentation shows public funds being used. After the Fourth of July celebrations, the NPS agreed to pay an additional $1.5 million to replace more of the brick pavers in that park. Then, in August, the president told reporters in the Oval Office that he was still deliberating on whether the brick pavers were good enough.”<\/p>\n

Read more A swing state made voting harder \u2014 and they targeted one vulnerable group<\/a><\/p>\n

He concluded, “‘Now we have a big decision to make,’ he said. ‘Do we take the pavers that are red\u2014you know, the red-brick pavers\u2014and do we change them into a granite, to gray granite? They\u2019re beautiful, but they\u2019re not the original. So we\u2019re gonna have to make that decision.’ The National Park Service, no doubt, will be ready to follow the president\u2019s lead if he pivots.”<\/p>\n

As president, Trump has repeatedly prioritized his personal pet park projects and other renovations over issues like affordability that matter most to Americans. This includes his construction of a border wall through Big Bend National Park, his destruction of the White House\u2019s East Wing and West Wing Colonnade and his plans to seize the Smithsonian.<\/p>\n

Read more Two of Harp\u2019s alleged leaked \u2018love letters\u2019 to Trump shock critics<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Staff starved and critical work frozen as elite funding goes to helicopters, landscaping, and gray granite.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5123,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5124","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nTrump caught using taxpayer cash for bizarre paving obsession - Next Address America<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=5124\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Trump caught using taxpayer cash for bizarre paving obsession - Next Address America\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Staff starved and critical work frozen as elite funding goes to helicopters, landscaping, and gray granite.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=5124\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Next Address America\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-08-21T07:36:16+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=5124#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=5124\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/a4840e0eb2094ec31aed2107d53108b3\"},\"headline\":\"Trump caught using taxpayer cash for bizarre paving obsession\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-21T07:36:16+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=5124\"},\"wordCount\":445,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=5124#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/cd2eb48c6d6512b3fc3538a3b1279e08.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=5124#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=5124\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=5124\",\"name\":\"Trump caught using taxpayer cash for bizarre paving obsession - Next Address America\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=5124#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=5124#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/cd2eb48c6d6512b3fc3538a3b1279e08.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-21T07:36:16+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/a4840e0eb2094ec31aed2107d53108b3\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=5124#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=5124\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=5124#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/cd2eb48c6d6512b3fc3538a3b1279e08.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/cd2eb48c6d6512b3fc3538a3b1279e08.webp\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":600},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=5124#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Trump caught using taxpayer cash for bizarre paving obsession\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Next Address America\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/a4840e0eb2094ec31aed2107d53108b3\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Trump caught using taxpayer cash for bizarre paving obsession - Next Address America","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=5124","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Trump caught using taxpayer cash for bizarre paving obsession - Next Address America","og_description":"Staff starved and critical work frozen as elite funding goes to helicopters, landscaping, and gray granite.","og_url":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=5124","og_site_name":"Next Address America","article_published_time":"2026-08-21T07:36:16+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=5124#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=5124"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/#\/schema\/person\/a4840e0eb2094ec31aed2107d53108b3"},"headline":"Trump caught using taxpayer cash for bizarre paving obsession","datePublished":"2026-08-21T07:36:16+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=5124"},"wordCount":445,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=5124#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/cd2eb48c6d6512b3fc3538a3b1279e08.webp","articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=5124#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=5124","url":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=5124","name":"Trump caught using taxpayer cash for bizarre paving obsession - Next Address America","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=5124#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=5124#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/cd2eb48c6d6512b3fc3538a3b1279e08.webp","datePublished":"2026-08-21T07:36:16+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/#\/schema\/person\/a4840e0eb2094ec31aed2107d53108b3"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=5124#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=5124"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=5124#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/cd2eb48c6d6512b3fc3538a3b1279e08.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/cd2eb48c6d6512b3fc3538a3b1279e08.webp","width":1200,"height":600},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=5124#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Trump caught using taxpayer cash for bizarre paving obsession"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/","name":"Next Address America","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/#\/schema\/person\/a4840e0eb2094ec31aed2107d53108b3","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com"],"url":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5124","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5124"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5124\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/5123"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5124"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5124"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5124"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}