Records: Trump's White House ballroom estimated at $600M
Internal contractor records show the planned White House ballroom would cost about $600 million, with more than half expected to come from federal taxpayer funds. The March estimate is $200 million higher than President Trump’s public cap of $400 million and contradicts his repeated claim that private donations would cover the entire project. The documents include line-item cost details that the administration has not previously released. If taxpayers fund more than half, the ballroom would set a precedent for using federal dollars on a lavish executive residence renovation and could reshape future White House renovation budgets.
The White House complex cannot be allowed to become the Trump Palace complex, so, yes. Level the ballroom. You need to understand that if we don't tear it down it will be the primary thing on the site. It'll be a monument to Trump's grotesque corruption forever.
Will Stancil188It's also hideous, with absurd, Trumpified design features like giant columns and staircases that lead nowhere. There is no attempt follow any architectural principle - just pointless signifiers of grandiosity and wealth, Trump gaudiness and classlessness embedded at the heart of US government.
Maggie Priceless9Agreed. Reconstruct the first ladies wing and resurrect Mrs Kennedy's Rose Garden as well. Put Carter's solar panels back and Mrs Obama's veggie garden too.
Luke M8Honestly I want a left leaning politician who will spite and vilify MAGA, not someone who will talk about reconciliation
Silly B Man6Also the “donors” who funded this vandalism in the first place will be the ones who pay, when we seize their assets as part of the sentence for bribery
brendanamartin.bsky.social4Fund the demolition and rebuilding of the East Wing as part of a Billionaires Give Back bill. bsky.app/profile/bren...
Tear that shit down. He can’t be allowed to get away with it. I’d rather have nothing there than that ballroom.
Sean Bertollo4It’s about the principle. How many times have Dems come in and just been like “meh, water under the bridge” This things a symbol to a worthless and useless schmuck who’s building something to honor himself. If we let it stand, it’ll be a monument to corruption forever.
Plain Simple Garak4If you rename it, they will simply rename it back to Trump whenever they have power. Level it all. Rebuild what was.
futurepastnow.bsky.social4I will vote for whichever Dem runs on demolishing it.
Michael Love2Personally I think the WH is no longer particularly fit for purpose, and that after they tear the ballroom down, they should build a new executive residence / office complex and turn the old one into a museum.
Strawberry Coffin2These people act like we don’t spend $10 billion a day on a hot war. It’s basically all Monopoly money, yes we have the resources to demolish a building.
“.. Trump has repeatedly said that the price tag would not exceed $400 million and that private donations routed through a nonprofit would cover its entire cost.” @washingtonpost.com www.washingtonpost.com/investigatio...
f-ckelon.bsky.social6Wow, didnt see that one coming.
Cali Sky Riri4Where did we hear this before? Oh yeah, when he said Mexico would pay for the border wall.
ranworth63.bsky.social3Elect a crook = This is what we get. Character is Destiny.
SeekHigherGround2cool but not clicking the BezosPost. no oligarch news sources needed
Josey2@schumer.senate.gov @pelosi.house.gov @hakeem-jeffries.bsky.social @sanders.senate.gov @aoc.bsky.social @warren.senate.gov @repdangoldman.bsky.social @adamschiff.com @captmarkkelly.bsky.social And where are the ineffective, do-nothing Dems? DO SOMETHING - or retire/resign already!
According to documents from the White House ballroom contractor, the cost of the project is actually estimated at $600 million — and more than half of that is coming from taxpayers. www.washingtonpost.com/investigatio...
DJM67, bscs, mba, spipc, ...lmnop4But...WE DON'T WANT A BALLROOM IN THE FIRST PLACE! Thank for your attention to this matter.
walkingpete.bsky.social2With that and the 300 billion, even if the next president wanted to provide healthcare Trump would have spaffed all the public funding away… Terrible businessman…
Saoirse Like Inaoirse2It's the half not coming from taxpayers that will cost taxpayers the most.
Yet another reason why tearing down the ballroom has to be a red line for Democrats and why Newsom utterly failed the test. www.washingtonpost.com/investigatio...
Antifascist Militant49I mean if they won't even tear down the ballroom they certainly don't have the spine to pack the courts or the other million things we'll need to do.
Marc5Bingo, I will not vote for someone who does not guarantee that they will not undo everything Trump touched. East Wing, Rose Garden etc etc
*takes a long drag off a clove* …And if, as posited, Donald John Trump is in fact a lich, you know his phylactery is one of those gold-plated toilets. I mean, why do you think he's "renovating" the East Wing & installing a "secure (golden) ballroom?" Bet you cash money he wants that toilet in there.
Hasn't the weather been strange lately22I want to be absolutely clear that when we coined Lich President Theory in July 2024, it was a joke. Something reminded me of the movie Intacto and the chat spun it off from there, it wasn't meant to be a thing I would end up lowkey believing -_-
Jennifer Kretchmer5This is, essentially, the premise of a D&D game I’m ACTUALLY IN. We also have cryptoliches, which leads to SO MANY SHENANIGANS.
Kay Orchison2I knew it, Skibidi was a coded warning
Like, who is this statement even for? The only people who *like* the ballroom are Trump himself, his nearby sycophants, and the biggest online MAGA influencers. Threatening to tear down the ballroom costs nothing and excites the opposition.
Katherine Alejandra Cross45Also, addendum to my OP: he looks good on paper to *pundits.* Many in the press like him because they, like him, are fighting yesterday's war (and many embrace reactionary centrism). So when he bucks the Dem Party, they stroke their chins in admiration. But Dem voters want Dems who like being Dems.
Kevin Cantú6he could even just avoid opining on it if he wanted: “the ballroom? listen we have to rebuild like a thousand things more important: [insert filibuster here about the Forest Service, the FDA, CDC, FEMA, … ramble until they cut your microphone]
