US President Donald Trump has installed new plaques beneath White House portraits of his predecessors that mock them with insulting comments and unfounded claims.

The additions to the West Wing portrait gallery are the latest in a series of changes made to the iconic building as part of Trump’s controversial White House makeover.

The President penned many of the plaques himself – and a close look at the text shows similarities to his social media posts, including liberal use of inflammatory language and exclamation marks.

Underneath Joe Biden’s portrait, which is in fact just a photograph of an autopen signing his name, the plaque reads: “Sleepy Joe Biden was, by far, the worst President in American history.”

It goes on to falsely claim Biden won the “most corrupt election ever”, and criticises his record on issues such as the economy and foreign policy. “Nicknamed both ‘Sleepy’ and ‘Crooked’, Joe Biden was dominated by his Radical Left handlers,” it states.

Another plaque refers to “Barack Hussein Obama” as “the first Black US president… and one of the most divisive political figures in American history”. It falsely alleges he “spied on the 2016 Presidential Campaign of Donald J. Trump, and presided over the creation of the Russia, Russia, Russia Hoax, the worst political scandal in American History”.

Bill Clinton got off relatively lightly in comparison, although the text on his plaque concludes: “In 2016, President Clinton’s wife, Hillary Clinton, lost the Presidency to President Donald J. Trump!”.

Even Trump’s fellow Republicans haven’t escaped completely unscathed.

George W Bush’s plaque says he started wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, “both of which should not have happened”. Ronald Reagan enjoys more positive commentary, in which it is claimed he was “a fan of President Donald J. Trump” long before his White House run.

Trump inspects his own portrait on the new ‘walk of fame’ when it was first unveiled.

Although the plaques were added only this week, Trump unveiled the “Presidential Walk of Fame” featuring the portraits of past presidents several months ago.

At the time, the portrait – or, rather, non-portrait – of Biden created a stir. Trump has long been fixated on Biden’s autopen use, suggesting it was linked to his “cognitive decline”.

The current President’s own portrait is now accompanied by a plaque that is full of praise and declares he has delivered on his promise to usher in “the Golden Age of America”.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the new plaques were an “eloquent” description of each president’s legacy.

“As a student of history, many were written directly by the President himself,” she said in a statement.

During his current term, Trump has embarked on a significant makeover of the White House that includes the demolition of the historic building’s East Wing to make way for a lavish $US200 million ($A308 million), 8400-square-metre ballroom.

Other changes have included an expanded use of gold-coloured accents and gilded fixtures reminiscent of Trump Tower in New York and the ‍President’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.

In April, Leavitt told The Wall Street Journal the new décor made it a “golden office for the golden age”.

White House speech

Trump also boasted of his own achievements on Wednesday (US time) in a rare evening address from the White House, during which he blamed his Democratic predecessor for soaring consumer prices as his party braces for a tough mid-term ⁠election next year.

“Eleven months ago, I inherited a mess, and I’m fixing it,” Trump said in his opening remarks.

“We have brought more positive change to Washington than any administration in American history.”

President Donald J. Trump delivers a speech from the White House 🇺🇸

“Over the past 11 months, we have brought more positive change to Washington than any administration in American history.” @POTUS pic.twitter.com/E9v8zG18dc

— The White House (@WhiteHouse) December 18, 2025

Trump briefly touched on many topics during his speech, including crime, immigration, the war on drugs and restoring strength in America’s military.

He again blamed the previous administration led by Biden, even while conceding that prices remain high.

“I am bringing those high prices down and bringing them down very fast,” he said.

He praised his administration’s record on wage increases and employment.

“We are the hottest country anywhere in the world,” Trump said.

–with AP/AAP