Cara Brown McCormick
On Day 16 of the government shutdown, President Donald Trump held a special “Legacy Dinner” at the White House to thank donors who helped fund his new ballroom project, which costs around $200-$250 million.
The 90,000 square foot ballroom began construction in September.
As images of the demolition of parts of the East Wing went viral on October 20, the Wall Street Journal reported that the US Department of the Treasury has told its employees not to share photos of the construction. The Treasury’s headquarters is located across the street from the White House, so its employees have a front-row seat to the construction project.
Trump said it will provide space to host thousands of guests each year and will help future presidents hold larger and more impressive events.
The White House said that representatives from major corporations attended the “thank you” dinner, including Lockheed Martin, Microsoft, Meta, Google, Amazon, and Palantir. The guest list also featured oil billionaire Harold Hamm, Blackstone CEO Steve Schwarzman, and cryptocurrency entrepreneurs Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss. Officials confirmed that YouTube, which is owned by Google, contributed $22 million to the nonprofit funding the ballroom. The payment was part of a settlement that resolved a 2021 civil lawsuit Trump filed against the company. According to CBS News, it is not known how many of the roughly 128 attendees have already donated to the construction project, but Trump thanked those present for giving what he described as “tremendous amounts of money.” He told the crowd the ballroom’s cost has been “fully taken care of.”
“Everything is fully financed.” He went on to add, “So many of you have been really, really generous. A couple of you, here, saying, sir, would 25 million dollars be appropriate? I said, I will take it.”
Trump said in July that the project would respect the White House’s traditional design.
“It won’t interfere with the current building. It’ll be near it but not touching it — and pays total respect to the existing building, which I’m the biggest fan of,” he said during an executive order signing. “It’s my favorite place. I love it.”
He added that getting approval for the project was much easier now that he is president.
“They told me, ‘Sir, you can do what you want. This is the White House,’” he said. “But we made sure it still fits the style of the building.”
President Trump has been adding his own signature aesthetic to the White House, introducing gold accents and ornate finishes in the Oval Office reminiscent of his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. To help with the redesign, he enlisted an interior specialist whom one adviser referred to as the president’s “gold guy.”
The finished ballroom will include marble floors, gold accents, tall columns, and sparkling chandeliers. President Trump said that because so many people are donating materials and labor, the ballroom might even be completed for less money than expected.
The President has also made changes to the iconic White House Rose Garden, now called the Rose Garden Club. He paved over the grass and set out tables and patio furniture, complete with beach umbrellas, much like the ones at Mar-a-Lago. There are still roses in the garden.
The Wall Street Journal recently reported that Trump described thinking about real estate as “relaxing” for him.