President Donald Trump told the public this week that the massive new ballroom he is building will be fully protected from drone attacks, touting the project as both secure and cost-effective while continuing to personally oversee dramatic changes to iconic government spaces.
Since his inauguration in January, Trump has taken an unusually hands-on role in reshaping federal landmarks. The president has pushed through a series of high-profile renovations, including paving over the Rose Garden, demolishing the East Wing of the White House to make room for a grand ballroom, adding his name to the Kennedy Center, and creating a “Presidential Walk of Fame” inside the White House.
The most ambitious project is the ballroom now rising where the East Wing once stood. Earlier this month, Trump dismissed the previous architect for the project after warnings that a proposed 90,000-square-foot ballroom would overshadow the 55,000-square-foot White House itself. Trump has brushed aside those concerns, framing the ballroom as a long-overdue addition that presidents and the country have wanted for more than a century.
On Monday, Trump made the comments during a joint press appearance with Benjamin Netanyahu, who was visiting the president at Mar-a-Lago. During the event, Trump again criticized Jerome Powell, renewing his threat to fire the Federal Reserve chairman, whose term ends in May.
Trump accused Powell of presiding over excessive cost overruns in the renovation of the Federal Reserve’s headquarters, using that criticism as a contrast to his own approach. The president argued that while the Fed is spending record amounts per square foot, his ballroom project is coming in under budget and ahead of schedule.
“He’s spending more money than any building has ever spent per square foot on the renovation of,” Trump said, referring to Powell. Trump then pivoted to his own project, describing it as “a magnificent, big, beautiful ballroom that the country has wanted, the White House has wanted for 150 years.”
Trump said the ballroom has grown even larger than originally planned after deciding it would be used for presidential inaugurations. He emphasized the security features built into the structure, highlighting what he called “bulletproof glass” and a specially designed roof.
“It’s got all bulletproof glass, it’s got all drone, they call it drone-free roof, so drone’s won’t touch it,” Trump said. “It’s a big, beautiful, safe building.”
The president framed the ballroom as a symbol of both strength and efficiency, stressing that the cost of the project represents only a small fraction of what he claims is being spent elsewhere in Washington. Trump’s remarks fit a broader pattern of contrasting his management style with that of entrenched bureaucracies, which he has long accused of wasting taxpayer dollars.
Trump’s aggressive redesign of historic spaces has drawn criticism from opponents, but supporters see it as consistent with his brand of bold leadership and willingness to challenge convention. By personally directing the changes, Trump has signaled that no institution is too old or too symbolic to be reimagined.
With the ballroom still under construction, Trump made clear that the project is about more than aesthetics. In his telling, it represents security, efficiency, and a break from what he views as decades of stagnation. And by declaring the building “drone-free,” the president underscored his focus on modern threats as he reshapes some of the most recognizable buildings in the country.
[READ MORE: Baier Presses Zelenskyy on Corruption as U.S. Funding for Ukraine Rolls On]
