Washington: US President Donald J. Trump has defended his plan to build a major ballroom complex at the White House, describing it as a private gift to the United States while accusing preservation advocates of filing a late lawsuit to block the project.
In a detailed statement posted on Truth Social, Trump said the project would cost between $300 million and $400 million and would be carried out in close coordination with the US military and the Secret Service from the outset. He emphasised that no taxpayer funds are being used.
“I’m building, on top of everything else that I am doing, one of the greatest and most beautiful Ballrooms anywhere in the World, with more than 300 Million Dollars of Great American Patriots’ money, and working closely with, right from the beginning, the United States Military and Secret Service,” Trump wrote.
He described the project as “a GIFT (ZERO taxpayer funding!) to the United States of America,” adding that the final cost would depend on “the scope and quality of interior finishes.”
Trump said the ballroom aims to meet a long-standing White House need for a large indoor space for official functions. According to him, previous presidents and administrations have sought such a space for more than 150 years.
The new ballroom, he added, would eliminate the need for what he called a “cheap and unsafe ‘tent’” currently used on the White House lawn for major state events, dinners, meetings, conferences, and future inaugurations. Trump said the project is necessary for safety, security, and capacity reasons, particularly due to weather-related risks associated with outdoor or temporary structures.
Despite widespread awareness of the project, Trump said it is now facing legal action from the “Radical Left National (No!) Trust for Historic Preservation.” He accused the group of attempting to block a widely supported initiative.
Trump said major construction materials have already been ordered or are ready to be ordered, listing “Structural Steel, Windows, Doors, A.C./Heating Equipment, Marble, Stone, Precast Concrete, Bulletproof Windows and Glass, Anti-Drone Roofing, and much more.”
“There is no practical or reasonable way to go back. IT IS TOO LATE!” he wrote.
He questioned why the lawsuit was filed at this stage and said Congress had never attempted or wanted to stop the project, adding, “Everyone knew what was taking place at the White House.”
Addressing concerns about the East Wing, which is near the proposed addition, Trump said the structure had already been extensively altered over the years. “For those that are interested, the tiny East Wing was so ‘bastardised’ and changed, built and rebuilt over the years, that it bore no resemblance or relationship to the original building,” he wrote.
Trump said preservationists should not be allowed to block a necessary addition to the White House, emphasising that a president has never needed permission to change or enhance the complex because of the special status of the grounds.
He added that the project had “the design, consent, and approval of the highest levels of the United States Military and Secret Service” and said the lawsuit had exposed what he described as a previously top-secret fact.
Warning against halting construction, Trump said: “Stoppage of construction, at this late date, when so much has already been ordered and done, would be devastating to the White House, our Country, and all concerned.”
With IANS inputs