This year has been full of so many castrophically evil stories, almost all of which are happening because of Donald Trump and his fascist minions. It feels weird to complain about issues which are somewhat superficial, but I still find this stuff extremely depressing. Trump already paved over the White House Rose Garden, turning it into an outdoor dining pavilion similar to something you would find outside of a mall food court. But Trump’s biggest change to the White House is the destruction of the East Wing, all to build a massive “ballroom” on the White House complex. Well, Trump announced the ballroom plans months ago, and they broke ground on Monday.
President Donald Trump has begun demolishing the traditional work space of First Lady Melania Trump and her staff to make way for his “big, beautiful” ballroom. Two months after unveiling plans to build the 90,000-square foot ballroom, construction crews have begun tearing down the covered entrance of the East Wing, with cranes and backhoes attacking window frames and knocking away parts of the exterior cladding. Dramatic photos and videos revealed the first stage of the transformation on Monday, showing windows of the historic building smashed and ripped off their hinges.
The new ballroom is being built in the East Wing, which has long housed the offices for the first lady, whose staff have been temporarily relocated to other parts of the White House complex. The Daily Beast has reached out for confirmation as to where they are currently working from.
The former upper floor of White House calligraphy office now has a massive hole, while trees and shrubs have also been cleared from the White House South Lawn to make way for construction.
Trump acknowledged the project at an event in the East Room on Monday afternoon honoring the Louisiana State University baseball teams, telling his guests: “right on the other side, you have a lot of construction going on.”
He later posted on Truth Social declaring that “ground has been broken on the White House grounds to build the new, big, beautiful White House Ballroom. Completely separate from the White House itself, the East Wing is being fully modernized as part of this process, and will be more beautiful than ever when it is complete! For more than 150 years, every President has dreamt about having a Ballroom at the White House to accommodate people for grand parties, State Visits, etc. I am honored to be the first President to finally get this much-needed project underway — with zero cost to the American Taxpayer!”
However, critics have noted that the ballroom, which is expected to cost at least $250 million, is being built at a time when many Americans are still struggling with cost-of-living pressures – something that Trump promised to fix.
What I keep thinking about is the history, and how presidents for the past century have been so conscious of the unique history of the White House, and they see themselves as caretakers to the historic property, if nothing else. Sure, some of them made smaller renovations – I remember President Obama talking about how Harry Truman added a private balcony on the top floor, and it was one of Obama’s favorite spots. But none of them would have ripped out the East Wing and built a gaudy, tacky f–king ballroom. Even Trump’s hero Richard Nixon was in awe of the White House’s history and he took pains to never damage or disrupt the actual structure and the museum-quality pieces around the house.
Photos courtesy of Getty, Cover Images.
