Tag Archives: White House ballroom

A New Level Of Insanity

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On Sunday, The Epoch Times posted an article reporting that the National Trust for Historic Preservation has filed a lawsuit stating that the ballroom construction project at the White House violates several federal statutes. Does anyone think this lawsuit would be filed if it were anyone other than President Trump doing the construction?

The article reports:

The National Trust is also asking for an injunction to halt work on the project “until the necessary federal commissions have reviewed and approved the project’s plans; adequate environmental review has been conducted; and Congress has authorized the Ballroom’s construction,” according to the complaint.

The National Trust describes itself in the complaint as a private, charitable, educational nonprofit corporation that Congress chartered in 1949. Its purpose is “to further the historic preservation policy of the United States and to promote the public’s awareness of and ability to comment on any activity that might damage or destroy our nation’s architectural heritage.” The trust has filed preservation lawsuits against several presidential administrations, the complaint said.

The lawsuit lists several federal agencies and those who head them as defendants.

The defendants are: the National Park Service and its acting director, Jessica Bowron; John Stanwich, superintendent of the White House and President’s Park; the Department of the Interior and its secretary, Doug Burgum; the General Services Administration and its acting administrator, Michael Rigas; and Trump.

The complaint said the demolition of the East Wing of the White House to make room for the ballroom facility began in late October without congressional approval or approval from federal commissions responsible for development oversight in the nation’s capital. The federal government did not carry out required environmental studies, nor did it give the public an opportunity for comment, the complaint said.

In other words, let’s delay the project until President Trump is out of office. The project does not use taxpayer money and provides a ballroom that is desperately needed. I also suspect that all building permits are in order. That should be the end of the discussion.

Why?

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Every time I think members of Congress can’t say anything dumber, they prove me wrong.

On Sunday, Fox News reported the following:

Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., said the next Democratic presidential nominee must vow to demolish President Donald Trump‘s White House ballroom, proposing the pledge a litmus test for the party’s 2028 contenders.

“Don’t even think of seeking the Democratic nomination for president unless you pledge to take a wrecking ball to the Trump Ballroom on DAY ONE,” Swalwell wrote on X on Saturday.

Swalwell’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital for additional comment.

For the first time in its history, the White House will have a formal ballroom, a new addition built where the East Wing once stood, a project that has become a political flashpoint as photos of the demolition fuel debate over President Trump’s mark on the historic residence.

On July 31, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt announced the planned construction of a 90,000-square-foot ballroom. The sprawling ballroom will accommodate approximately 650 seated guests and will stay true to the classical design of the White House.

“The White House is currently unable to host major functions honoring world leaders in other countries without having to install a large and unsightly tent approximately 100 yards away from the main building’s entrance,” Leavitt said, adding the new ballroom will be “a much-needed and exquisite addition.”

I am not always a big fan of President Trump’s taste, but this ballroom is needed. Outdoor tents are tacky. Outdoor tents are much more tacky than any decor that can be put in the coming ballroom. I can’t help thinking that if former President Biden had done this, Representative Swalwell would have praised it.

There is another factor to consider when looking at the design of the ballroom. President Trump is a second-generation American. His grandparents on his father’s side came here from Germany and his mother came here from Scotland. Germany is the home of beautiful cathedrals and amazing art. America builds simple churches and simple buildings. I wonder how much of President Trump’s taste in architecture and decor is rooted in the culture of Europe.

The Hysteria Continues

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The political left’s hysteria over the addition of a ballroom to the White House continues. Those objecting choose to overlook the fact that the addition is paid for by private money and that the addition is needed to provide a place for larger gatherings. Meeting in tents outside because the White House is limited in the number of people it can host is simply not appropriate. There are not that many months when the climate of Washington, D.C., is all that comfortable outside–humidity, heat. and cold are normal occurrences. Those objecting also seem to forget that additions and changes to the White House have occurred multiple times over the years–paid for with taxpayer money.

On Thursday, Townhall reported:

New York AG Letitia James vowed to make a name for herself by prosecuting President Trump, vowing to “get” the former President and going so far as to try and seize his properties. Frank Luntz warned her that such a move would make Trump more popular with voters. Luntz was right, and now James is facing charges of mortgage fraud.

The Left is calling that prosecution a “weaponization” of our justice system. That’s adorable for a variety of reasons, of course. Enforcing the law is not a “weaponization” of anything, and Democrats spent years telling us “no one is above the law.”

What they meant by that, of course, is that Republicans aren’t above the law. Democrats, on the other hand, are.

Rather than learning from this — after all, many people warned them that weaponizing the government against Republicans would backfire — Democrats are doubling down.

Case in point: House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries just vowed to investigate the people who made private donations to President Trump’s White House ballroom project.

The article notes:

Jeffries said, without evidence, that the donors were probably using the donations to curry favor with the Trump administration.

“More likely, this is part of what Donald Trump has been doing since day one of his presidency: running the largest pay-to-play scheme in the history of the country. And probably soliciting donations from people who’ve got business before the United States government,” Jeffries said.

“And all of this is going to have to be investigated. It will. All of this will have to be uncovered. It will. And these people are going to be held accountable, no matter how long it takes,” Jeffries continued. “And that’s a warning to all of these people participating in this scheming to manipulate taxpayer dollars and, of course, to destroy the people’s house. The White House belongs to the American people. It doesn’t belong to Donald Trump.”

Right. And 75 million Americans voted for Donald Trump to be president. It’s their house, too. Hakeem Jeffries went on MSNBC and threatened people who are making lawful donations to improve the White House.

President Trump was a successful businessman before entering politics. In the circle of people he hung around with, a donation of several thousand dollars is probably not even noteworthy. The idea that this is pay-to-play is ridiculous, particularly since the Democrats in Congress never seemed to question President Biden’s seemingly endless supply of funds.