Republicans in Congress are moving to fast-track funding for Donald Trump’s planned White House ballroom, using the weekend attack at a Washington press gala to argue that current venues are too vulnerable.
According to the New York Times, Senator Lindsey Graham said Monday that he wants lawmakers to approve roughly $400 million for the project, which would include not just an event space but secure facilities beneath it. The goal, he said, is to keep large, high-profile gatherings on White House grounds rather than sending presidents and guests off-site.
“We saw Saturday that America has a problem,” Graham said, pointing to the difficulty of securing major events outside a controlled environment.
Other Republicans quickly lined up behind the effort. Representative Lauren Boebert and Senator Rand Paul said they were preparing legislation, while Senator Tim Sheehy pushed for a fast vote in the Senate, calling it “an embarrassment” that such events cannot be held safely in the capital.
The ballroom has already become a flashpoint. Trump began moving forward without congressional approval, including plans that involved demolishing the historic East Wing. A federal judge emphatically halted the project, citing the lack of authorization, though an appeals court has allowed construction to continue while it reviews the decision.
Last week, a court order forced the release of a contract that hid the identities of donors to Trumps ballroom project. That contract also “does not require conflict-of-interest review for the White House or the broader executive branch.”
Trump has said the project would rely on private donations, raising concerns about donors seeking influence. Graham suggested shifting the project to rely on public funding, offset by federal fees, while leaving private money for extras.
Democrats attacked this latest push. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Republicans should focus instead on funding the Department of Homeland Security, which has been partially shut down for more than 70 days, including resources for the Secret Service.
“If Republicans truly want to improve security, they should join Democrats in funding the Secret Service, not Donald Trump’s luxury ballroom,” Schumer said.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries dismissed the project as a “vanity” effort, arguing that lawmakers should prioritize cost-of-living concerns over a new event space.
Republicans counter that the project is meant as a long-term upgrade tied to the presidency itself. Graham framed it that way, saying the benefits would extend beyond any single administration.
“This is not about Trump,” he said. “It’s about the presidency of the United States.”
One open question is whether such a space would actually be used for the events now being cited as justification. The White House Correspondents’ Dinner, for example, is organized by journalists, not the current presidential administration, and traditionally held at the Washington Hilton, and it is unclear whether the group would move it onto White House grounds.
