Donald Trump’s prized ballroom is facing further delays after the Senate removed more than $1 billion in taxpayer funding for security upgrades to the building.
The cost of the President’s planned White House ballroom has ballooned to $400 million, and though Trump says private donors will fund it, taxpayers would foot the security costs.
Though Republicans control the Senate, they might not be able to pass the $72 billion spending package they want to pass, which includes ballroom-related funding.
Senate minority leader, Chuck Schumer, said: ‘Republicans tried to make taxpayers foot the bill for Trump’s ballroom.
‘Senate Democrats fought back – and blew up their first attempt. We will be ready to stop them again,’ he added.
The President has pushed to build his historic ballroom, even citing the need for it after a gunman opened fire at the White House Correspondents’ dinner.
The $400,000,000 project began in October after the shock destruction of the historic East Wing.
For more than 100 years, the East Wing served as the traditional base of operations for the first lady.
In July 2025, when Trump first announced the ballroom, he said it would not interfere with the mansion itself.
‘It’ll be near it but not touching it and pays total respect to the existing building, which I’m the biggest fan of,’ he said of the White House.
The destruction infuriated civilians and politicians alike – California governor Gavin Newsom wrote on X: ‘Ripping apart the White House just like he’s ripping apart the Constitution.’
Trump wrote of the ballroom’s construction on Truth Social, saying: ‘All I am doing is fixing, cleaning, running, and ‘sprucing up’ a terribly maintained, for many years, Building.’
Trump explained there would be a ‘drone-proof roof’, as well as ‘air-handling systems’ and ‘biodefense all over’.
He also said the ballroom was needed to host large events for world leaders and other guests, and that a ballroom tent was not sufficient because of how wet the grass gets.
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