Kamala Harris unveils her historic desk – and people are pointing out just how different it is from Trump’s

‘Love the history behind this desk,’ one social media user tweets about new addition to vice president’s office

Social media users have unfavourably compared Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris’ new desks after they both gave a peek inside their offices.

Late last month, Ms Harris revealed on Twitter that she had a new desk in her White House office that was “constructed by the @USNavy out of reclaimed materials from the USS Constitution warship”.

More details about the desk were then released on Monday, including that it was built by Navy Seabees using wood, copper and nails taken from the warship that was commissioned under George Washington in 1794.

The desk includes intricate carvings of an eagle and stars at the front, and was commissioned during Mr Trump’s administration, with construction beginning on 4 January, just two weeks before Ms Harris and Mr Biden were inaugurated.

A new desk in Mr Trump’s office in Florida was also revealed on Twitter on Monday by his former adviser Stephen Miller after attending a meeting at the former president’s Mar-a-Lago resort.

Read more:

• Hunter Biden news - live: President’s son’s book details addiction battle 
• Donald Trump re-branding himself as ‘45th president’ to get away from ‘damaged’ name, say experts
• Utah fathers will be forced to pay half of women’s healthcare costs during pregnancy
• Hunter Biden opens up on affair with brother’s widow: ‘It came out of overwhelming grief’
• Matt Gaetz claims sex crime claims are Democrat conspiracy to derail his engagement

The desk, from Hooker Furniture, resembles the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office and features a piece of the metal used to build the US-Mexico border wall, while a widely mocked small bronze statue of Mr Trump is situated on a table just behind.

The pair’s desks received different reactions on social media after they were unveiled, with Twitter users being more complementary towards the new addition to the vice president’s office.

Ms Harris’ desk was showered with praise by social media users, including @LaywerLiz, who tweeted: “Love the history behind this desk – fitting for the occasion and the glass ceiling shattering VP.”

The praise was echoed by @mdenneby who replied: “I love this so much. To respect and learn from our history – for better and worse – honours an aspirational future.”

However, others were less complementary about Mr Trump’s new desk, with several users highlighting its resemblance to his old desk in the Oval Office.

User @Bufshuf described it as sad that Mr Trump is “sitting behind a replica of the Resolute Desk in his office in Mar-a-Lago,” while screenwriter Bob Schooley joked that Mr Trump could have bought “a Resolute copy, but it costs 10x as much”.

While @cptaffe tweeted: “I swear Trump has absolutely no taste. If you have millions of dollars, commission a beautiful hand-carved desk from an artist”, while another user simply put: “Tacky decor”.

Mr Trump’s desk also caused controversy after a bottle of diet coke was seen on it just a few days after he called for a boycott of Major League Baseball, Coke and Delta Airlines, who have all protested the new restrictive voting rights law in Georgia.

Ms Harris’ desk was one of two “heritage desks” that were constructed by Seabees this year, with the other delivered to the office of the secretary of the Navy, which is currently led by Thomas Harker in an acting capacity.

His desk also includes materials from other famous warships, including the USS Chesapeake frigate, commissioned in 1794, and the USS Arizona that sank during World War II.

Speaking to Military.com about the new desk, Mr Harker said: “Each of these historic warships, like so many other vessels throughout the history of the Navy, embody the honour, courage, and commitment of those who served in them.”

He added: “More importantly, the desks will be lasting reminders to our civilian leaders that today’s Navy and our diverse sailors and Marines are deployed forward – alongside our allies and partners – to deter aggression and preserve freedom of the seas.”