© Obtained by The Washington Post/Obtained by The Washington Post
Demolition crews on Monday began tearing down part of the White House to build President Donald Trump’s long-desired ballroom despite his pledge that construction of the $250 million addition wouldn’t “interfere” with the existing building.
Construction teams were demolishing a portion of the East Wing, with a backhoe ripping through the structure, according to a photo shared with The Washington Post and two people who witnessed the activity and spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe it.
A cluster of people, including members of the Secret Service, stood on the steps of the Treasury Department to watch the construction unfold, said one of the people. Sounds of construction were also audible on the White House campus, although the project was not easily visible to the public given fencing on the grounds.
Trump acknowledged the project in remarks Monday afternoon in the White House’s East Room, gesturing to the wall behind him.
“Right on the other side, you have a lot of construction going on, which you might hear periodically,” the president said at an event honoring the Louisiana State University and Louisiana State University at Shreveport baseball teams. He subsequently posted on his Truth Social platform that the “much-needed project” had begun.
“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.,” the president wrote.
Democrats panned the project, with California Gov. Gavin Newsom and other lawmakers arguing that Trump’s priorities and preferences were not aligned with average Americans.
“Trump’s billionaire ballroom. This is a disgrace. Welcome to the Second Gilded Age,” Rep. Darren Soto (D-Florida) wrote on social media.
Trump has long touted his plans for a 90,000-square-foot structure that would nearly double the footprint of the main building and its East and West wings. He had also suggested that the construction would not affect the existing White House.
“It won’t interfere with the current building. It won’t be. It’ll be near it but not touching it — and pays total respect to the existing building, which I’m the biggest fan of,” Trump said during an executive order signing in July. “It’s my favorite. It’s my favorite place. I love it.”
A White House official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to describe construction on the ballroom, confirmed that the demolition process on the East Wing began Monday. Other parts of the project, such as efforts to preserve objects of historical value, have been underway for several weeks, the official said.
Officials declined to provide an explanation for Trump’s earlier comments that the new construction would not interfere with the existing building. Officials have separately said that the ballroom would replace the East Wing, noting the many changes made to that structure long before Trump’s presidency.
“The East Wing was constructed in 1902 and has been renovated and changed many times, with a second story added in 1942,” the White House said in July.
The administration also said that it expected construction to begin by September, detailing plans to make some of the most significant changes to “the People’s House” in a century. Trump originally estimated the project would cost $200 million to build but has since upped that to $250 million.
The National Park Service, which manages the White House grounds, did not respond to inquiries about how much of the East Wing would be destroyed. In a 56-page document about maintaining the fundamental character of the White House and the surrounding grounds, the Park Service said in 2014 it would work with presidential administrations, the U.S. Secret Service and other agencies “to ensure both the preservation and use of one of the most recognized houses in the world.”
The East Wing has traditionally been used by the first lady and her team. Offices for the president and his top deputies have long been located in the West Wing.
Trump last week also touted his planned ballroom during a dinner with executives from the tech, finance and defense industries, telling them that the project was fully financed after receiving donations as large as $25 million from dozens of companies, including Apple, Amazon, Lockheed Martin and Coinbase. (Amazon founder Jeff Bezos owns The Washington Post.)
