President Joe Biden's Oval Office: A Look Inside

The Oval Office received a bit of a makeover on Wednesday.

After White House staff welcomed the new administration following Inauguration Day festivities, President Joe Biden gave reporters a glimpse into his new work-from-home setup. Signing 17 executive orders hours after he was sworn in, Biden also revealed another key difference between his administration and that of his predecessor: the decor. 

From busts of well-known American historical figures to Biden family photos, here’s how the 46th President of the United States has chosen to style his new office.

Keeping With Tradition

One item Biden kept? The Resolute Desk, which former President Donald Trump and other presidents have used to wield the power of the pen since it was gifted to President Rutherford B. Hayes by Queen Victoria in 1880.

The New First Family

Forget the fridge. Biden now gets to display family photos in the Oval Office. While many images that now adorn the credenza are of family members who accompanied Biden on Inauguration Day, the president also included one who could not: his late son, Beau.

An Interest in Science

A portrait of Benjamin Franklin has replaced that of Andrew Jackson, the seventh president. Trump received backlash for his choice to include Jackson after critics pointed to the former president's brutal policies against indigenous people and his participation in the slave trade. The replacement is meant "to represent Biden's interest in following science," according to The Washington Post, which got the first look at the Oval Office's new layout. Like other artwork on display in the White House, Franklin's portrait appears to be on loan from the Smithsonian Institution's National Gallery of Art.

Busts of Civil Rights Icons

Several busts of American historical figures now line the Oval Office. Seated directly behind the Resolute Desk is a bronze bust of Latino civil rights leader Cesar Chavez. Other new additions include busts of Rosa Parks, Eleanor Roosevelt, and an Allan Houser sculpture depicting a horse and Chiricahua Apache rider once belonging to the Hawaii Senator Daniel Inouye, the Post reports. A bust of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., first installed by President Barack Obama and then also displayed by Trump, flanks the fireplace along with a bust of Robert F. Kennedy. A bust of Winston Churchill, which was on loan from the British government for Trump, is no longer on display.

Predecessor Wall Decor

A massive portrait of Franklin D. Roosevelt now hangs over the mantle of the fireplace, opposite the Resolute Desk. The former president is joined by paintings of George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, and Alexander Hamilton.

To the Moon and Back

Astronauts may not return to the Moon's surface until 2024, according to NASA, but that's not stopping Biden from showing off his interest in space. Stationed on a bookshelf in the Oval Office now rests a moon rock that is intended to "remind Americans of the ambition and accomplishments of earlier generations," according to The Washington Post. Here's a look at what space exploration could look like under the Biden administration. 

It's the Little Things

Last but not least, Biden appears to have removed Trump's infamous red button from the Resolute Desk. The button was reportedly used by Trump to summon staff to bring him a Diet Coke. 

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President Joe Biden's Oval Office: A Look Inside

Cheddar takes a look at newly installed President Joe Biden's personal stamp on the Oval Office.

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