Around Monday, October 20, 2025, or Tuesday, October 21, 2025, the total demolition of the West Wing began. Being a native Washingtonian, I’ve watched that whole strip of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue change. Before we go any further, there is a weird irony that took place. On October 13, 1792, the cornerstone of the White House was laid and during the week of October 21, 2025, 233 years later, part of the White House was demolished, which was the West Wing. The West Wing was built in 1902 to make room for Theodore Roosevelt’s family.
This was done with only the approval of the current President and The National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC), which is appointed by the Presidential. The Committee for the Preservation of the White House, The Commission of Fine Arts (CFA), The National Park Service (NPS), Congress or the American public were ever taken into consideration.
This editorial is not about the history of the White House. This editorial is about something very heart wrenching for me, and it should be for all Americans. The day was September 11, 2001. At 10:03 a.m., a plane crashed in a field in Stonycreek Township, Somerset County, PA. At 8:42 am this flight took off from Newark International Airport headed to San Francisco International Airport.
This Boeing 757-222 was United Airlines Flight 93 with 44 passengers and crew aboard. This plane was hijacked by terrorists. Two planes had hit the World Trade Center and one the Pentagon. As we all know, the Pennsylvania bound plane was headed towards Washington, D.C., the nation’s capital. We memorialize this as 9/11.
The heroic action of the passengers on the plane prevented it from hitting the Capital or the White House. These heroes now are buried in this field, which is now the location of the Flight 93 National Memorial. When I saw the demolition and destruction of the West Wing, I thought of Flight 93. These people lost their lives protecting our most precious institutions and buildings. When we remember the pictures in our mind of the West Wing demolition, let us not forget what might have been, and realize where we are headed. What the terrorists couldn’t do because of the heroics of the passengers of Flight 93, a selfish and egomaniacal narcissist did with little care of the American psyche or approval. Who is the true enemy within?
By: The sons and daughters for a free America.
Featured image/photo by Chitundu Phiri on Unsplash.