Among President Donald Trump’s chief second-term domestic priorities has been an effort to renovate and modernize the nation’s capital.
One major component of the ongoing project includes his plans for a new ballroom at the White House, envisioned as a secure, state-of-the-art location for state events and other functions.
But, along with his knee-jerk critics on the left, a handful of Senate Republicans recently voted to block the project.
According to The Hill:
Six GOP senators voted with Democrats in support of a proposal sponsored by Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) to block the construction of President Trump’s 90,000-square-foot White House ballroom unless Congress authorizes the project.
The amendment would have given Congress sole authority to construct a new ballroom and would have barred any federal funds or private donations from being used to build the new ballroom without congressional approval.
Six Republicans voted with Democrats to waive a procedural objection to the amendment: Sens. Susan Collins (Maine), Jon Husted (Ohio), Jerry Moran (Kan.), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), Dan Sullivan (Alaska) and Thom Tillis (N.C.).
The amendment — which was proposed during a vote-a-rama on Republicans’ reconciliation bill to fund immigration enforcement — needed 60 votes to overcome a point-of-order objection.
It failed by a vote of 52-47.
The failed amendment sparked some social media discussion:
Thank you @SenateGOP our party can always count on you to do what every deranged democrat does. You are always a disappointment.
— 2024 (@loveusa2018) June 4, 2026
They mad because they can't get their hands on the money and steal most of it making the cost rise ten fold.
— RogerGowan (@GowanRoger) June 4, 2026
Idiots, but once a rhino always a rhino.
— Mech's World (@MechsWorld) June 4, 2026
Here’s what Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche had to say in response to the congressional stonewalling, per the New York Post:
“We’re going to continue to do — we, meaning the Department of Justice — will continue to do everything we can to get that ballroom built,” Blanche told The Post in an exclusive interview.
“And that’s working through the courts and appealing where we need to and trying to get the judges to understand why this is extraordinarily important for the government and for this country,” he said.
The Post accompanied Blanche and FBI Director Kash Patel to a news conference in Ohio where charges were announced against nine defendants accused of bilking US taxpayer-funded programs — including Medicaid scammers who allegedly took $30 million away from kids’ behavioral health services to splurge on luxury cars.
The fraud bust is one of several the DOJ and FBI have been unveiling in coordination with a White House anti-fraud task force.
And here’s some coverage of Trump making the case for the project:
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