London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Oct 11, 2026

Inside Biden’s Oval Office: no more Trump ‘Diet Coke button’

Inside Biden’s Oval Office: no more Trump ‘Diet Coke button’

All presidents tweak the Oval Office decor at the start of their terms to reflect their personal tastes and to telegraph broader messages to the public.

A button former president Donald Trump used to order Diet Cokes while sitting at the Resolute Desk in the White House has apparently been moved since President Joe Biden took office.

Trump first showed off the wooden call box in 2017 interviews with the Associated Press and the Financial Times. He showed reporters that with a push of a red button, a White House butler would bring him a glass of soda in the Oval Office.

In the years after, Trump was pictured regularly with the rectangular wooden box on the desk, right next to his phones.


US President Joe Biden at the Resolute Desk.


The call button is not new and isn’t only used for ordering fizzy drinks – President Barack Obama was once pictured with it on a table during a lunch with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.

But Biden appears to have moved the call button off his desk.

Instead, photos of his desk on Biden’s first day of office show two phones, a coffee cup, a set of pens. It’s unclear where the call button went.


Presidents almost always redesign the Oval Office upon taking office, and the call button wasn’t the only thing Biden changed.

Biden replaced a portrait of President Andrew Jackson with a portrait of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and opted to feature a number of progressives and activists through the room, including Robert F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jnr, Rosa Parks, Eleanor Roosevelt, and labour leader and civil rights activist Cesar Chavez.

He also chose to display portraits of Benjamin Franklin, President Thomas Jefferson, and Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton.


A bust of Mexican-American labour leader Cesar Chavez with Biden family photos in the Oval Office.


The most visually striking change is Biden’s choice of a deep blue rug, with the presidential seal in the middle, that was last used by President Bill Clinton, to replace a light coloured rug laid down by Trump. Biden is also using Clinton’s deep gold draperies.

Biden is keeping the Resolute desk, so named because it was built using oak from the British Arctic exploration ship HMS Resolute.


Portraits in the Oval Office.


The White House maintains a vast collection of furniture, paintings and other artefacts that they can choose from. Presidents are also allowed to borrow items from the Smithsonian and other museums.

The White House curator oversees everything, and the makeover is carried out in the hours after the outgoing president leaves the mansion and before the new president arrives.

Biden also replaced a row of military service flags Trump used to decorate the office with a single American flag and a flag with the presidential seal, both positioned behind his desk.

He also chose a tufted, dark brown leather chair instead of keeping the reddish brown desk chair Trump used.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
UK Government Rejects US-Russia Diesel Agreement and Reaffirms Sanctions Against Moscow
UK and Germany Agree to Deepen Security and Economic Cooperation Following Berlin Talks
British Prime Minister Burnham Pledges Closer EU Ties During Visit to Germany
UK Announces New Sanctions on 17 Russia-Linked Entities During Foreign Secretary's Ukraine Visit
UK and Germany Finalize Kensington Treaty to Strengthen Defense and Technology Cooperation
Britain Maintains Diplomatic Mission in East Jerusalem Despite Israeli Closure Deadline
English Councils Push Government to Rethink Proposed Funding Cuts
Scottish Homebuilding Falls to Lowest Level in 11 Years
BBC Chief Matt Brittin Defends Restructuring as Staff Challenge Job Cuts
UK Finance Warns High Energy Costs and Bond Yields Are Complicating Fiscal Outlook
UK Adopts All 44 Recommendations on Regulating AI in Healthcare
Chancellor John Healey Prepares Autumn Budget as Borrowing Costs Strain Public Finances
UK Investigators See Strong Indications of Iranian Link After RAF Fairford Security Operation
Laura Trott Pledges Tighter Controls on Political Activism in UK Classrooms
Welsh Ministers Launch Long-Term Review of North Wales and Anglesey Crossings
Welsh Government Orders 18-Month Study of Road Solutions Around Newport
Reform UK MP Sarah Pochin Faces Scrutiny Over £800,000 Second Home Purchase
British Households Grow More Concerned About Fuel and Energy Prices
NHS Leaders Warn of Rising Winter Pressure on Emergency Departments
Kemi Badenoch Proposes £2.3 Billion Employer National Insurance Cut for Young Workers
Middle East Conflict Could Erase UK Fiscal Headroom, Economists Warn
Manchester City Found Guilty of Multiple Premier League Financial Rule Breaches
UK Security Services Find Strong Indications of Iranian Role in RAF Fairford Incident
Costa Coffee Returns to Operating Profit on Iced Drinks and Menu Changes
Asos Warns Customers After Unauthorized Access to Retail App and Data
Kemi Badenoch Puts Growth and Deregulation at Center of Conservative Conference
Campaigners Warn of Deepening Social Care Crisis for Disabled Adults
Study Finds Rising Early-Onset Cancer Rates Among Adults Under 50 in Britain
UK Coach Operators Warn High Diesel Prices Could Force Route Cuts
FCA Opens Independent Review Into Handling of Epstein-Linked Whistleblower Case
Argentina Vows to Block Falkland Islands Offshore Oil Development
UK Chancellor Prepares Fiscal Measures and Welfare Reforms Ahead of Autumn Budget
Sainsbury’s and Morrisons Explore Potential Multi-Billion-Pound Merger
UK Weighs Tariffs on Chinese Electric Vehicles to Align With European Union
UK Threatens Diplomatic Expulsions Over Planned Closure of East Jerusalem Consulate
UK Energy Price Cap Hits Three-Year High as Middle East Conflict Raises Costs
Seventh Arrest Made in Suspected Terror Plot at RAF Fairford
Systemic Education Collapse Sparks Mass Student Uprisings in France
Green Party Faces Backlash Over Resolution Equating Zionism With Racism
Conservatives Debate Scrapping Environmental Rules for New Homes
Cornwall Insight Warns UK Energy Bills Could Approach £2,000 This Winter
UK Coach Operators Warn of Service Cuts as Diesel Prices Exceed £2
Scottish Parliament Approves £68 Billion Budget With New Tax and Property Measures
FCA Opens Independent Review Into Handling of Epstein Whistleblower
UK Government Drops Plan to Suspend Jury Trials in England and Wales
Bank of England Holds Interest Rate at 3.75% as Markets Watch November
Two Iranian Nationals Charged Over Alleged Plot Targeting Manchester Jewish Community
UK Fiscal Headroom Halves to £11 Billion Ahead of Budget, EY Warns
US Bomber Withdrawal From RAF Fairford Prompts UK Security Review
Sarah Wakfer Appointed Chair of Northern Ireland’s Health and Care Regulator
×