US President Donald Trump on Sunday advocated for the construction of a ballroom on the grounds of the White House, once again, after the shooting occurred at the Washington Hilton hotel. Taking to Truth Social, the US President argued that the incident would never have occurred had the White House been equipped with its own safe and secure ballroom facility and slammed the members of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for bringing a lawsuit to stop the construction of the ballroom.
“What happened last night is exactly the reason that our great Military, Secret Service, Law Enforcement, and, for different reasons, every President for the last 150 years, have been DEMANDING that a large, safe, and secure Ballroom be built ON THE GROUNDS OF THE WHITE HOUSE. This event would never have happened with the Militarily Top Secret Ballroom currently under construction at the White House,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Taking a dig at one of the members of the organisation, the 79-year-old Republican then wrote: “The ridiculous Ballroom lawsuit, brought by a woman walking her dog who has absolutely no standing to bring such a suit, must be dropped immediately. Nothing should be allowed to interfere with its construction, which is on budget and substantially ahead of schedule!!!” Trump further wrote.
The development came hours after Cole Tomas Allen, a part-time teacher and independent game developer, opened fire on a US Secret Service Agent outside the ballroom of the Washington Hilton Hotel during the annual White House Correspondents’ dinner event, where President Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, and Vice President JD Vance were present.
THE WHITE HOUSE BALLROOM SAGA: A TIMELINE OF EVENTS
Trump announced plans to construct a ballroom on the premises of the White House, replacing the historic East Wing in July 2025, almost one-and-a-half years after his return as the US President.
As part of the plan, the East Wing was demolished a few months later (in October), which triggered a massive political controversy in the US. The preservationist group brought a lawsuit, alleging that Trump had exceeded his authority by razing the East Wing and beginning the construction of the proposed ballroom without the approval of the US Congress.
In March this year, a US judge asked the Trump administration to halt the $400 ballroom following the lawsuit.
“Unless and until Congress blesses this project through statutory authorisation, construction has to stop,” said Richard Leon, a US district judge who was appointed by George W Bush, as per a report by The Guardian.
The Trump administration appealed against Richard Leoon’s decision in the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. A week back, the Court of Appeals said that construction of the underground and above-ground portions could resume.
