The newly reopened Washington Monument, which typically offers sprawling views of Washington, DC from 555 feet high, now provides a peek at the White House’s East Wing renovations.  

Andrew Leyden, a freelance photographer in Washington, D.C., posted photos of the scene from the top of the obelisk on X last week.

The photos show construction crews, cranes and a gaping construction site where the East Wing recently stood. President Donald Trump had the East Wing demolished last month after initially insisting construction of a 90,000-square-foot ballroom wouldn’t involve the structure’s demolition.

Photos of a bulldozer tearing through the wing’s facade went viral on social media.

The White House is now undergoing renovations to transform the site, which traditionally served as the first lady’s offices.

The modern version of the East Wing was added to the White House in 1942.

Critics were outraged at the demolition because it was done without public input. In an open letter on Oct. 21, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a Washington, DC-based nonprofit, said it was “deeply concerned” about the project and urged the National Park Service to pause demolition until the proposed plans could go through public review.

Why was the demolition done?

In a July news release, the White House said the construction would occur to create a space for large-scale events.

“The White House is currently unable to host major functions honoring world leaders and other countries without having to install a large and unsightly tent approximately 100 yards away from the main building entrance,” the news release stated.

The ballroom is expected to be an “ornately designed and carefully crafted space” with a 650-person seating capacity, higher than the previous 200-person seating capacity in the East Room of the White House.

The funeral for former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney is set to take place this week in Washington, DC.

Cheney died of complications of pneumonia and cardiac and vascular disease at the age of 84 on Nov. 3, his relatives said.

The longtime force in Republican politics served under former President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2009 and was considered one of the most powerful and controversial men to hold the vice president role, in large part because of his role in leading the push to invade Iraq in 2003.

He became a critic of President Donald Trump after the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection, saying he voted for former Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election, USA TODAY previously reported.

Born in Lincoln, Nebraska in 1941, the former VP grew up in Wyoming, where he served as a congressman and later retired. He is survived by his wife, Lynne, and two daughters, Mary and Liz. Liz Cheney is a former GOP lawmaker.

Here’s what to know about the funeral of Dick Cheney.

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When is Dick Cheney’s funeral?

Cheney’s funeral will be held at 11 a.m. ET on Thursday, Nov. 20.

Where is Dick Cheney’s funeral?

Cheney’s funeral will take place at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, DC.

It will be by invitation, and only those with invitations issued in advance of the service will be admitted to the Cathedral with security measures in place for staff and guests.

The public is invited to watch the service online.

Who is speaking at Dick Cheney’s funeral?

The following people are among nearly a dozen individuals set to speak at Cheney’s memorial service:

• The Rev. Randolph Marshall Hollerith, dean of Washington National Cathedral
• George W. Bush, the 43rd president of the United States 
• Dr. Jonathan Reiner, Professor of Medicine and Surgery, George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences 
• Cheney’s daughter, Liz Cheney
• Cheney’s grandchildren
• Pete Williams, Former Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs and former NBC News Justice Correspondent 

Where will Dick Cheney be buried?

As of Sunday, Nov. 16, information about a potential burial of Cheney had not been released.

USA TODAY has reached out to a Cheney family spokesperson for comment.

Contributing: Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA TODAY

Here are some observations from the game:

• Simon Nemec has been on a remarkable run. In the past three games he’s scored five goals – the shootout winner included, although those don’t show up on the official stats list. Nemec scored the game-tying goal against the Islanders and a hat trick in Chicago, before adding his shootout winner tonight.

“When Sheldon said I’m up (in the shootout), in my head I’m like, I’ve just got one move, so just go and try it and it worked,” Nemec said. “I’m happy for that.”

“He’s feeling it,” Keefe said of his decision to give Nemec the opportunity in the shootout, “But I also felt we needed a right handed shot to give the goaltender a different look. That was it. And you’re looking at righties, and we don’t have a ton of options there, and Nemo is feeling it, so why not?”

• Without Hughes, the Devils had revamped power play units:

PP1: Nemec, Hischier, Bratt, Meier and Mercer
PP2: Luke Hughes, Gritsyuk, Palat, Cotter and Noesen

Gritsyuk scored the opening goal of the game on the power play, which went 1-for-3 against the Caps, all three Washington penalties coming in the opening 7 minutes of the game.

• Prior to the game, head coach Sheldon Keefe gave some injury updates, with Zack MacEwen and Cody Glass both having traveled back to New Jersey for further evaluation on their injuries sustained in Chicago. Keefe mentioned that MacEwen will be out for “an extended period of time” while Cody Glass is out week-to-week. With both theirs and Hughes’s absence, three lineup spots opened.

The Devils had made two callups prior to the game, Shane Lachance and Nathan Légaré, who both played their first games of the season. For Lachance, it was his NHL debut.

Légaré finished the night with 9:26 of ice time and was bumped up to the third line to play with Ondrej Palat and Juho Lammikko for parts of the game, while Lachance played seven minutes in his debut.

“Guys like Légaré and Lachance coming in today, we need minutes from these guys,” Keefe said. “This game we played tonight is two steps faster than the game we played in Chicago. It was a different league out there today. You can’t get by if you’re not using six defensemen and four lines. We need minutes from those guys and everybody contributed in their own way and that’s what you need. That’s a team win. Full marks for our guys.”

Juho Lammikko re-entered the Devils’ lineup, playing the third-line center role.

• The Devils played their first game this season without forward Jack Hughes. He is expected to miss two months of action after undergoing surgery on his finger. In Hughes’s absence, Jesper Bratt was wearing the ‘A’ on his jersey as an alternate captain alongside Ondrej Palat. Bratt also wore the A in Hughes’s absence last season.

• In a scary incident, Alex Ovechkin threw Jesper Bratt into the boards in the far corner of the Capitals’ net at the tail end of the first period. Bratt lay on the ice while the play continued momentarily. It was one of the more bizarre moments as the Devils capped off the play seconds after Bratt fell to the ice with a goal by Luke Hughes. Instead of celebrating, Hughes went right from the follow-through of his snapshot to Bratt’s aid, putting his hand up to call for team trainers. Bratt was attended to on the ice, eventually making his way to the bench on his own accord. There was no celebration when Luke Hughes scored the Devils’ second goal, assisted by Bratt and Brenden Dillon, with Bratt still lying on the ice.

Bratt’s teammates immediately called for the athletic trainer, who came to his aid. Bratt was able to skate off on his own and remained on the Devils bench.

• The Devils played in their fifth straight overtime. Only two other times in franchise history has the team played five straight overtime games. Both previous times came during the 1995-96 season.