CNN: The White House is upgrading its front door to fortify the entrance

A tarp covers scaffolding on the North Portico of the White House on July 10, 2026
Photo: AP

Israel shared new intelligence with the U.S. that it said indicated a fresh Iranian plan to kill President Trump, people familiar with the matter said, a finding that would mark an escalation in the war between Washington and Iran, The Wall Street Journal reports.

The White House is making security-focused upgrades to its front door, an official told CNN, in a project that’s expected to take months.

The changes, which sources said have long been advocated by the US Secret Service, are aimed at fortifying the White House entrance at the North Portico, which has recently been obscured by scaffolding and a tarp as workers repair the exterior columns at President Donald Trump’s request.

But unlike many of Trump’s projects around the White House — from hanging gold signage to paving the Rose Garden — the work on the front door is not cosmetic, and instead focused on enhancing its security, the White House official said.

There are other potential security upgrades in the works, as well. On Friday, the Trump administration submitted plans for new fencing that would enclose Lafayette Park, the area surrounding the north side of the White House.

It’s not unusual for the park to be intermittently closed to the public during presidential movements, and the project’s goal is to offer a more permanent solution to the existing patchwork of temporary barricades, what officials describe as “comprehensive yet flexible fencing strategy for varying security risk.”

The security enhancements come as Trump has been the target of multiple assassination attempts, including at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner at the Washington Hilton in April. And last month, there was an alleged plot to attack the UFC fight on the White House South Lawn. Officials have pointed to those incidents as justification for the president’s sprawling, 90,000-square-foot ballroom project, which they’ve said is expected to include a sophisticated drone port and sniper nests, along with a secure underground bunker.

The North Portico fortifications are expected to be complete by approximately mid-September, the White House official said.

…There is one nuance in this story that raises the question: Who is really interested in the assassination attempt on Trump – Iran or... Israel itself, which is deliberately setting up Iran?

Two sources familiar with recent US intelligence, CNN reports, said that the Israeli report is viewed — in part — as piece of a broader Israeli effort to influence Trump's decision making on Iran.

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