\u201cIt\u2019s very difficult to have a bunch of important people in the same place unless it\u2019s really, really secure,\u201d Sen. Lindsey Graham told reporters on Monday. \u201cThe times in which we live are unusual. I\u2019ve been up here for a while now. I\u2019ve never felt the sense of threat that exists today.\u201d<\/p>\n
Graham and his GOP colleagues Sen. Eric Schmitt and Sen. Katie Britt are pushing a bill to fund the ballroom and offset costs by using customs and national parks user fees. The proposal includes building new military and Secret Service infrastructure<\/a> within the ballroom complex.<\/p>\n Graham said the White House supports his effort, despite the president\u2019s frequent claims that he and private donors were personally funding the entire ballroom project. The White House has previously said major tech corporations, including those that do business with the federal government and donated to Trump\u2019s inauguration, have committed millions to funding the ballroom<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Independent has contacted the White House<\/a> for comment.<\/p>\n Fellow Republicans have joined the effort to boost the ballroom, which the White House argues is more crucial than ever after the security breach at the Correspondents\u2019 Dinner.<\/p>\n Sen. Rand Paul has said he will bring a bill to the floor Tuesday that moves the ballroom project forward without using additional taxpayer funds, while allowing Congress to give expedited reviews to major White House projects.<\/p>\n In the House, Rep. Lauren Boebert is working on companion legislation, she said Monday.<\/p>\n She told the MeidasTouch network that \u201chardly any\u201d taxpayer money would be involved in the effort. The main obstacle remaining, she said, was an ongoing lawsuit by a preservation group against the ballroom project.<\/p>\n \u201cHe has it funded,\u201d Boebert said of the president. \u201cWe just have to get it approved and get the lawsuit over with.\u201d<\/p>\n The president has argued Saturday\u2019s shooting underscores the need for a new secure, large-scale meeting space on the White House grounds.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat happened last night is exactly the reason that our great Military, Secret Service, Law Enforcement and, for different reasons, every President for the last 150 years, have been DEMANDING that a large, safe, and secure Ballroom be built ON THE GROUNDS OF THE WHITE HOUSE,\u201d Trump wrote early Sunday morning in a Truth Social post.<\/p>\n Influential Democrats say they will oppose efforts to fund the ballroom with taxpayer dollars.<\/p>\n \u201cAt this point no,\u201d Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin told<\/a> The Hill. \u201cThere\u2019s obviously a lot of questions about how much it costs, how many people will be accommodated.\u201d<\/p>\n Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez accused the president of making shifting claims about the ballroom in recent months.<\/p>\n \u201cHe demolished the East Wing of the White House, a historic jewel of the American people, and he started to build this ballroom long before any incident,\u201d the New York congresswoman told reporters on Monday. \u201cHe also promised the American people that this was going to be built with private dollars, and so the idea that they are trying to change the rationale for this in retrospect doesn\u2019t quite add up.\u201d<\/p>\n Others argued it would be inappropriate for the White House to host an event like the White House Correspondents\u2019 Dinner, regardless of the facilities.<\/p>\n \u201cBy the way, the White House hosting the correspondents dinner in its own ballroom is arguably a violation of the First Amendment: it’s government control over press access and expression and could have a chilling effect on criticizing the president,\u201d former Obama administration under secretary of state and TIME editor Richard Stengel wrote on X<\/a> on Monday.<\/p>\n Sen. John Fetterman has been a rare Democratic voice in favor of the ballroom. He called on opponents of the project to end their \u201cTrump Derangement Syndrome\u201d and get behind the ballroom effort.<\/p>\n \u201cAfter witnessing last night, drop the TDS and build the White House ballroom for events exactly like these,\u201d he wrote on X on Sunday.<\/p>\n Outside of Congress, the National Trust for Historic Preservation has sued to stop construction on the ballroom, arguing the president illegally embarked on the effort without consulting Congress.<\/p>\n On Sunday, the Justice Department urged the group to drop the suit, citing the shooting at the Correspondents\u2019 Dinner, but the trust plans to move ahead with the complaint.<\/p>\n![\"Senate](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/2026-03-30T031340Z_1825789151_RC2OEKA1HGIE_RTRMADP_3_USA-TRUMP.jpg\")
Senate Republicans have unveiled a bill to use $400 million in taxpayer funds to support President Trump\u2019s White House ballroom project, which the president previously said would be 100 percent privately funded (Reuters)<\/p>\n![\"Supporters](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/2273443703.jpg\")
Supporters of the plan, including Sen. Lindsey Graham, argue that the recent shooting at the White House Correspondents\u2019 Dinner underscores the need to urgently build a new secure facility at the White House for events (Getty)<\/p>\n![\"Democrats](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/2268357229.jpg\")
Democrats including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez say they will oppose using taxpayer dollars for the ballroom (Getty)<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/2272612872.jpg\")
The White House has ramped up calls to finish the ballroom project after a gunman was able to partially breach Saturday\u2019s White House Correspondents\u2019 Dinner, which was held in the Washington Hilton hotel (Getty)<\/p>\n