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By Giulia Carbonaro
Senior Reporter
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President Donald Trump’s brand new White House ballroom will cost as much as $400 million, according to the latest estimates—double what the administration initially said.
Commenting on a lawsuit filed by a historic preservation group fighting against the construction of the ballroom on the site of the White House’s now-demolished East Wing, Trump told reporters on Tuesday: "We got sued. We’re donating a $400 million ballroom, and we got sued not to build it."
It is the first suggestion that the total cost for Trump’s ballroom might have ballooned to $400 million, from the initial estimate of $200 million made this summer by White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.
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Why It Matters
The construction of a new ballroom at the White House has sparked both anger and enthusiasm among Americans, who are mostly split along party lines on its construction.
In a survey ran in October by the Washington Post, ABC News, and Ipsos, more than half of U.S. voters (56 percent) said they opposed the project, with 62 percent of Republicans supporting it and 88 percent of Democrats against it.
What has proven particularly divisive has been the demolition of the historic East Wing to make space for the ballroom, a move that has triggered outrage among many Americans and it is at the heart of the current lawsuit and dispute over the project.
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The case poses the question of whether presidential authority and national security claims—with the Trump administration saying construction of a new ballroom is a matter of national security—can prevail over historic preservation law, which requires a full set of reviews and checks for federally protected sites which the administration sped through.
What To Know
Construction for the multi-million ballroom in the White House’s East Wing began in late October, when the historic East Wing was torn down by demolition workers to the dismay of many onloookers.
As it was during the government shutdown, the federal agency responsible for overseeing these operations, the National Capital Planning Commission, was closed.
Trump has repeatedly said that the White House needs a state ballroom, which—with its approximately 90,000 total square feet and a seated capacity of 650 people—would give the site the space 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 project is being funded via private donations from individuals, corporations and tech companies, including Google and Amazon—something of which Trump has been proud, saying that the ballroom’s construction cost will not be shouldered by taxpayers.
The White House, however, has not disclosed how much every donor would contribute to the ballroom.
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Nonetheless, the estimated cost of the ballroom has ballooned in recent months. In August, Leavitt indicated that the project will have cost roughly $200 million. Then in late October, Trump raised the estimate of his planned ballroom to $300 million.
And on Tuesday, Trump said that the ballroom will likely cost less than $400 million, but he gave a higher sum to have some leeway with the press.
"We’re donating a building that’s approximately $400 million. I think I’ll do it for less, but it’s $400 [million] … I should do it for less," he said. "I will do it for less, but just in case, I say 400 otherwise, if I go $3 over, the press will say it costs more."
What People Are Saying
Trump wrote on Truth Social: "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!"
He added: "The White House Ballroom is being privately funded by many generous Patriots, Great American Companies, and, yours truly."
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The White House said in a statement on October 21: "President Donald J. Trump’s visionary addition of a grand, privately funded ballroom to the White House [is a] bold, necessary addition that echoes the storied history of improvements and additions from commanders-in-chief to keep the executive residence as a beacon of American excellence."
Tad Heuer, the attorney representing the National Trust for Historic Preservation that has sued the Trump administration over the ballroom construction, said: "It’s not about the need for a ballroom. It’s about the need to follow the law."
What Happens Next
A federal judge looking into the lawsuit over Trump’s White House ballroom indicated on Tuesday that he is likely to deny a request for a temporary restraining order that would halt construction.
A decision is expected for Wednesday.
Trump has been portraying the use of private funds to build the ballroom as a success, a way to avoid spending American taxpayers’ money. But the issue raises ethical questions, according to experts, of what happens when private money is used to build the so-called "People’s House."
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