President Trump Swaps Resolute Desk In Oval Office Just Days After Musk’s Son’s Viral Visit

by

It seems the Resolute Desk has been temporarily set aside.

President Donald Trump has taken the iconic piece of furniture out of the Oval Office—just a week after Elon Musk’s son, X Æ A-12, made a memorable impression on it during a highly publicized visit.

X, the four-year-old son of Musk and singer Grimes, became an internet sensation after appearing alongside his father and Trump at a White House press conference.

During the event, the toddler was caught picking his nose and wiping it on the Resolute Desk, a moment that quickly amused social media users.

Clips of the incident went viral, with many online speculating about what X might have said to the president.

Speculation took off online, with some believing X muttered, “I want you to shut your mouth up.” Another widely shared theory suggested he was caught on a hot mic telling Trump, “You are not the president, you need to go away.”

Despite the viral moment, the four-year-old remained present as the 78-year-old officially granted his father, through the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), expanded powers to restructure the federal government.

Now, just days later, Trump has replaced the historic Resolute Desk with the lesser-known “C&O” desk. The president—who, according to the Daily Mail, has previously described himself as a germaphobe—insists the switch is only temporary while the Resolute Desk undergoes refinishing.

Posting on Truth Social, Trump wrote: “A President, after election, gets a choice of 1 in 7 desks.” He continued, “This desk, the ‘C&O,’ which is also very well known and was used by President George H.W. Bush and others, has been temporarily installed in the White House while the Resolute Desk is being lightly refinished—a very important job.

“This is a beautiful, but temporary replacement!”

The timing of the switch, coming so soon after X’s widely discussed visit, has sparked speculation over whether the refinishing decision was prompted by the toddler’s antics. While Trump has not commented on any connection between the two events, he did take a moment during the viral press conference to praise Musk’s son, calling him a “high-IQ individual.”

The Resolute Desk, one of the most storied pieces of furniture in American history, has been used by eight presidents since it was gifted to the White House by Queen Victoria in 1880.

Crafted from the timbers of the HMS Resolute, a British Arctic exploration vessel, the desk gained further fame when John F. Kennedy used it, with an iconic photograph capturing his son, JFK Jr., playing beneath it.

Trump also used the Resolute Desk throughout his first term, as did his predecessor, Barack Obama.

Now temporarily in its place, the C&O desk has its own historical significance. Originally built in 1920 for the owners of the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway, it was later donated to the White House. While George H.W. Bush was the only president to use it in the Oval Office, it had previously been utilized by Presidents Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, and Ronald Reagan in the West Wing study.

Though social media found amusement in X’s behavior, his mother appeared less entertained.

Grimes expressed concern, stating: “He should not be in public like this. I did not see this, thank u for alerting me. But I’m glad he was polite. Sigh.”

This isn’t the first time the Genesis musician, whose real name is Claire Boucher, has publicly criticized Musk on social media.

Earlier this year, a user called out Grimes for not stepping in when Musk publicly showcased their son, prompting her to voice her frustration.

“I have made it clear I do not approve of that in every conceivable way I know I am. I am desperate to solve it. It is a personal tragedy to me. But currently, I don’t know how to do that,” she wrote on January 10.

Just this week, Grimes took to X with an urgent plea directed at Musk regarding their son, writing in a now-deleted tweet: “Plz respond about our child’s medical crisis. I’m sorry to do this publicly but it is no longer acceptable to ignore this situation. This requires immediate attention.”

Grimes and Musk share three children: X Æ A-Xii, Exa Dark Sideræl, and Techno Mechanicus. She did not reveal which child is affected or provide details about the medical crisis.

While the official explanation is that the Resolute Desk is simply undergoing refinishing, social media remains skeptical. Many are joking that X Æ A-12’s “gift” may have prompted an early retirement for the desk—at least until it gets a deep cleaning.