The proclamation, dated 5 November and issued under the Antiquities Act, designates Room 110, Rooms 106 and 108, and Room 105 as the Oval Office National Monument. It directs the Secretary of the Interior, through the National Park Service, to manage the monument to protect its historic character, architectural integrity and association with the presidency.
The White House and its grounds are already recognised as a National Historic Landmark and are administered as part of President's Park by the National Park Service, according to the proclamation. The Oval Office has been the president's principal working office since its present location and form were established under Franklin D. Roosevelt, and the oval design was first introduced in the West Wing under William Howard Taft and refined in the early 1930s.
The Secretary must develop a management plan in consultation with the White House Office of Administration and require documentation, review and consideration of alternatives before any action that would substantially alter or demolish the monument or its essential architectural elements. The proclamation also directs coordination with the Committee for the Preservation of the White House and other advisory bodies.
The proclamation explicitly preserves the president's authority to redecorate the monument, select furnishings, and make ordinary operational and security modifications that do not substantially impair its historic structure or architectural character. It states that the designation does not alter existing statutory exemptions under the National Historic Preservation Act or diminish Congress's authority over federal property.
WA Today and The Brisbane Times reported that Trump criticised the Clinton home as he made the declaration.