Trump announces plan to chop down magnolia tree purportedly planted by Andrew Jackson: 'Must come to an end'

Fox News ^ | 3/30/25 | Andrea Margolis

[Libloather]

President Donald Trump announced plans to chop down a tree that was said to have been planted by former President Andrew Jackson.

In a Truth Social post on Sunday, Trump said that he was working with "the wonderful people at the National Park Service" to make "tremendous enhancements to the White House, thereby preserving and protecting History!"

"One of the interesting dilemmas is a tree planted many years ago by the Legendary President and General, Andrew Jackson," Trump described. "It is a Southern Magnolia, that came from his home, The Hermitage, in Tennessee. That’s the good news!"

"The bad news is that everything must come to an end, and this tree is in terrible condition, a very dangerous safety hazard, at the White House Entrance, no less, and must now be removed," he continued.

The historic tree will be chopped down in coming days, and Trump wrote that it will be replaced "by another, very beautiful tree."

"The Historic wood from the tree will be preserved by the White House Staff, and may be used for other high and noble purposes!!!" the president added.

Jackson, who served as president from 1829 to 1837, reportedly planted two magnolia trees near the White House in honor of his wife Rachel, who died in 1828. But according to the National Park Service's (NPS) website, the trees' connection to Old Hickory is debatable.

"Historical photographic documentation shows that magnolias first appeared at this location near the South Portico in the 1860s, still the trees are attributed to President Jackson," the agency explained.

"In 2006, the trees were designated as Witness Trees by the National Park Service, having borne witness to many ‘significant historic and cultural events,’" the NPS described. "The base of the trees also took the brunt of a Cessna airplane crash...

[Libloather]

...smart.

Signing pens used to deport illegals.

[Fiji Hill]

What was good about Andrew Jackson again? (Democrat) ?

For one thing, winning the Battle of New Orleans, which, historian Paul Johnson argues, kicked off the modern era by setting the US on the road to becoming a superpower. Afterward, his military actions in Florida helped to bring that Spanish territory into the Union.

[Oscar in Batangas]

Paging Fauxcahontas (D-MA)

[central_va]

I hate magnolia trees. What a mess the hard thick leaves make.

[ChessExpert]

I was referring to Indian Removal (from east of the Mississippi) also known as The Trail of Tears. That was the work of President Jackson (D) and his successor Martin Van Buren (D).

[Pelham]

Lol. You sometimes wonder if some freepers have ever read any history in their entire lives. And then there’s times that they remove all doubt.

When they scold the past using the cultural norms of 1960s liberalism it’s even more entertaining.

[CommerceComet]

Just remind the protesters that Andrew Jackson was a slave-owner and they'll probably chop the tree down themselves.

I like CtBigPat's idea of cloning a branch of the original tree, although placing in a little safer spot. I can't believe that Jackson didn't think of the helicopters landing in the front lawn when he planted the tree. Geez...

When the tree is taken down, what salvageable wood that can be taken from the tree should be turned over to a master carpenter to create something nice in Jackson's honor.

[Scrambler Bob]

How many slaves did Jackson lynch using that tree.

It must be saved!

[Magnum44]

[wardaddy]

Thank u

[wardaddy]

Thank u buck

I hope u got one this year

[The Great RJ]

Of course the media portrays this as Trump personally deciding to chop down this old tree for no reason other than he can. The reality is that the tree has deteriorated and become a hazard, not uncommon for a tree of this age, and needs to be removed. The decision came from the National Park Service and tree experts

[Albion Wilde]

Clone a branch, cut it down and replant.

I read somewhere during the 45 Admin that the White House arborists have been doing just that -- preserving shoots from old plantings at the WH.

[ETCM]

Wasn’t Andrew Jackson the first Democrat President?

Andrew Jackson is widely accepted as "The Father of the Democratic Party". Some on the left have distanced themselves from him since they started obsessing on slave ownership in our early years. Now rather than credit Jackson, some try to shift the credit to his supporters. And Jackson owned a lot of slaves, and even bought and sold slaves for profit, leading to some branding him a "slave trader". And of course he signed the Indian Removal Act, which "cleansed" land east of the Mississippi of Native Americans. Ironically, the primary strategy Jackson's newborn democratic party was to claim the Republicans had stolen the previous election.

[Albion Wilde]

So likely Clinton or whomever was in office in 94 should have had it removed but instead just trimmed it up, irresponsibly kicking the weak tree down the road for someone else to deal with, instead of doing a full job at time of incident.

But... but... he and Hillary hung condoms and drug paraphernalia on the Christmas tree inside the White House! Surely that was more important...

[cowboyusa]

He was one of the greatest Presidents, standing for The Union, small government, and against a National Bank

[Wonder Warthog]

IIRC, he was the only president who succeeded in balancing the budget.

[mowowie]

The tree should be cloned then replanted..

[bert]

I was too. All the southern Indians got moved to Oklahoma where they still are.

The Cherokee were pretty much defeated and eliminated as a perpetual threat in 1776 or thereabouts.