Turns out President Donald Trump was right.
Presidents really do need a White House ballroom to host events such as the White House Correspondents Association Dinner that turned into near-tragedy with the assassination attempt on President Trump by would-be assassin Cole Allen on April 25.
Following the evacuation of the of Washington Hilton — the same hotel Ronald Reagan was shot at in 1981 — and the cancelled dinner, President Trump reminded reporters in the White House briefing room this was why he believed the White House needed its own dedicated ballroom for events of this kind to be safe, stating, “I didn’t want to say this, but this is why we have to have all of the attributes of what we’re planning at the White House. It’s actually a larger room and it’s much more secure.”
Trump added, “It’s drone proof. It’s bulletproof glass, we need the ballroom. That’s why Secret Service, that’s why the military are demanding it. They’ve wanted the ballroom for 150 years for lots of different reasons. But today’s uh a little bit different because today we need levels of security that probably nobody’s ever seen before.”
In announcing the ballroom on July 31, 2025, the White House anticipated its enhanced security features: “The United States Secret Service will provide the necessary security enhancements and modifications.”
As recently as March 31, at the Oval Office, the President was saying the ballroom was needed for security, commenting on the federal court ruling from the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia, which placed a preliminary injunction on further construction.
Trump stated, “they said we need congressional approval. He also said, but this is positive for us, I’m allowed that, meaning we are allowed to continue building as necessary to, let’s say, what is that? To cover the safety and security of the White House and its grounds.”
The court’s March 31 ruling stated, “I must therefore GRANT the National Trust’s Motion for a Preliminary Injunction, and the ballroom construction project must stop until Congress authorizes its completion.”
But included exception for anything covering security: “I will also exclude construction necessary to ensure the safety and security of the White House from the scope of the injunction…” including a subterranean bunker.
But despite the judge’s ruling, the President said he didn’t think Congressional approval was necessary: “we don’t feel, we know that Congressional approval is not necessary to put up a ballroom. And with many things have been built on the site, they’ve never gotten Congressional approval. And especially when the money is all put up. This is all donations by people that love our country, that love the White House and that feel it was very necessary.”
So, the court says Congressional approval is needed, the President says it isn’t.
While we tend to agree with the President, the one person who gets to determine what is necessary for national security under his own authority, in going back and forth, and appeals to the D.C. Circuit Court and maybe the Supreme Court beyond that, it is conceivable maybe sometime in 2027 we would get the final word on whether presidents of their own accord can improve the White House grounds without further Congressional authorization.
Could that delay construction? It sure could.
And so, if the courts continue to delay Congressional leaders including House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) could render the entire case moot by sticking authorization for the ballroom in the upcoming Homeland Security reconciliation bill — along with anything else President Trump needs for national security and other improvements around Washington, D.C. he has planned.
Why wait?
Because the President acts of necessity, the Democratic Party opposition has become a party that refuses to protect national security because they believe Trump must always be wrong. It’s dangerous.
So, Congress can just take it out of Democrats’ hands for the next few years. Already, Republicans contemplate fully funding Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the U.S. Border Patrol following the longest partial government shutdown in history.
President Trump wants to protect the border, and so they defund the Border Patrol. He wants to enforce immigration laws, and so they defund ICE.
The President wants to stop Iran from getting a nuclear weapon — and if Congress does not act in 2026, Democrats will almost certainly defund the war effort should they reclaim majorities in the House and/or Senate in the 2026 Congressional midterms.
The President has planned a world class White House ballroom so that he and all future presidents will not have to travel into the less safe Washington, D.C. for events like the White House Correspondents Association Dinner or the Inauguration. It can all be done at the White House now, the most secure location in the world.
And, so, with another brush with death — the third attempted assassination of Trump in just a few short years — Congress can act with foresight, and fund the nation’s security while Republicans still have majorities to do so.
What other job do they have right now? Pretending they’re going to do great in the midterms by doing nothing? Okay, then.
Or maybe their job is to ask really nicely next year to Democrats who apparently are incapable of doing what is necessary to protect this country until proven otherwise worthy, so corrupted by the politics of the day they are, they simply must oppose Trump even if it endangers the country.
So, Congressional Republicans should at least make them vote on the ballroom in the reconciliation bill — not that voters care very much — and then get it done. For the sake of all future presidents and the country, nobody should ever get that close again.
Robert Romano is the Executive Director of Americans for Limited Government.
