US Politics
Trump reportedly plans to name $300 million ballroom after himself
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President Donald Trump is reportedly planning to name his $300 million White House ballroom after himself.
Officials are already calling the anticipated 90,000 square-foot event space “The President Donald J. Trump Ballroom,” according to ABC News.
Senior Trump officials told the outlet the name will “likely stick.”
Trump has not publicly named the ballroom yet, but when he was quizzed about it Thursday by ABC, he smiled and said, “I won’t get into that now.”
The Independent has contacted the White House for comment.
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Trump’s name is already plastered on countless buildings, golf courses and products in the U.S. and around the world.
As the government shutdown continued this week, crews began demolishing the historic East Wing to make way for Trump’s lavish ballroom, which he said is being paid for with private funds.
Big Tech giants Amazon, Apple, Google, HP and Microsoft are all chipping in for the project, which has received widespread condemnation.
Trump hopes to use the enormous gilded ballroom, which will dwarf the White House at 55,000 square feet, to host state dinners and other events before the end of his term in 2029.
The project was initially slated to cost $250 million, but the president said it had jumped to around $300 million this week.
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The president was asked about the naming of the ballroom late Friday as he was departing for Asia.
“I don’t have any plans to call it after myself,” Trump said. “That was fake news. Probably gonna call it the Presidential Ballroom or something like that. We haven’t really thought about a name yet.”
He said around $350 million had been raised by his private donors.
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Former President Ronald Reagan’s daughter was among those lamenting Trump’s demolition of the East Wing, which stood for more than 100 years before it was destroyed this week.
“The images we’ve now all seen of the East Wing being demolished are heartbreaking,” Patti Davis, 73, wrote in a New York Times opinion essay published Friday. “Over the centuries, many presidents have altered the White House, and certainly older buildings need to be updated and repaired. But this is complete destruction.”
White House spokesperson Davis Ingle previously told The Independent the renovations will benefit future generations.
“President Trump is working 24/7 to Make America Great Again, including his historic beautification of the White House, at no taxpayer expense,” Ingle wrote in a statement. “These long-needed upgrades will benefit generations of future presidents and American visitors to the People’s House – something we should all celebrate.”