Trump’s proposed new State Ballroom is not an addition to the White House— it’s a takeover
This time, however, the Executive Mansion is going big. As in, a chamber large enough to host an Abraham Accords signing ceremony with the leaders of two dozen Muslim countries, their honor guards, and a surprise flyover by the Israeli Air Force. The addition of a brand-new ballroom is the first major structural expansion to the Executive Mansion since Harry Truman put in a second floor and tried not to fall through the ceiling.
“President Trump is a builder at heart and has an extraordinary eye for detail,” said White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, adding that the president and his administration “are fully committed to working with the appropriate organizations to preserving the special history of the White House while building a beautiful ballroom that can be enjoyed by future administrations and generations of Americans to come.”
The solution was born out of long-simmering frustration at the White House, which, despite its grandeur, is woefully ill-equipped to host major functions with the kind of pomp befitting world leaders. Until now, state dinners and high-profile summits have often been relegated to a giant, uninviting tent pitched roughly 100 yards from the Executive Mansion.
The White House insists the entire project will be funded privately. Including, they note, by President Trump himself. The projected price tag is said to be $200 million, or roughly the new annual budget of the Department of Education.
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