The virtual hearing concerning the White House ballroom renovation became contentious, with criticisms of the design escalating to threats of legal action by the committee chair.

On Thursday, the National Capital Planning Commission, tasked with approving the ballroom’s redesign, convened online for a meeting.

Despite the digital setting, a small group of demonstrators gathered outside the NCPC’s headquarters in Washington, D.C.

The meeting turned heated when Jon Golinger, representing Public Citizen, an advocacy group founded by Ralph Nader, accused three White House aides on the planning board of lacking the necessary qualifications.

Golinger specifically targeted NCPC Chairman Will Scharf, along with aides James Blair and Stuart Levenbach, both of whom were appointed by President Donald Trump in July, just before the contentious demolition of the East Wing.

“This positioned them to push through and endorse the President’s favored projects without scrutiny,” Golinger asserted.

‘Those appointments were not just a crude political power play, they were unlawful and they destroy the credibility of the vote on this project if those individuals vote for it,’ he continued. 

Golinger called on Scharf, Blair and Levenbach to recuse themselves from the ballroom project vote – and resign from the NCPC ‘so the President may find and appoint qualified citizen commissioners that the law requires.’ 

Public Citizen’s Jon Golinger (left) created the most fireworks at Thursday’s National Capital Planning Commission meeting, charging that NCPC Chair Will Scharf (right), and other White House officials serving on the board were ‘not qualified’ to be there

Despite the fact that the NCPC meeting was Zoom-only, a group of protesters gathered outside the commission’s D.C. headquarters. One man dressed as Trump took a baseball bat to the White House’s East Wing, to reveal fake money inside, a representation of ballroom corruption

‘If they don’t, it will be clear to all that the vote to approve the ballroom project fix was in,’ Golinger said. 

Scharf shot back, arguing he was indeed qualified due to his time spent working for the governor of Missouri. 

‘To say that I lack the credentials to serve on this commission is frankly insulting,’ Scharf said. 

Golinger’s mic was left on, allowing him to challenge Scharf’s statement, pointing to campaign material from Scharf’s unsuccessful run for Missouri Attorney General, which made no mention of ‘planning experience.’ 

‘Mr. Golinger, your time’s expired, I’m just going to say the fact that you would look at campaign literature and say that that is an extensive description, or a comprehensive description of my experience as policy director to the governor of a major state, that’s frankly absurd,’ Scharf said. 

‘I think we’re done here,’ he added.

But Golinger wasn’t done, suggesting Scharf’s record still represented ‘someone who’s not qualified.’ 

‘Sir, if you want to sue me, I’ll see you in court,’ Scharf threatened. 

Protesters held up signs outside the headquarters of the National Capital Planning Commission including one that said ‘say no to Trump’s ballroom billboard.’ President Donald Trump’s $400 million ballroom project will be funded by donors, he says 

Protesters stand outside the headquarters of the National Capital Planning Commission in Washington, D.C. on Thursday as the group held an online-only meeting about President Donald Trump’s White House ballroom project

Protesters hold up colorful signs and tote bags outside the Washington, D.C. headquarters of the National Capital Planning Commission, a group stacked with Trump allies, which will likely approve the ballroom project during an April meeting 

He then asked Blair and Levenbach if they wanted to speak to their credentials. 

Neither White House staffer piped up. 

Witness testimony stretched for about three and a half hours, with only one woman, a distillery owner named Tara Brown, viewing the project positively. 

Everyone else, from the head of groups like the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the DC Preservation League, representatives from the Society of Architectural Historians, architectural history professors, and average citizens, all complained about the project’s enormous size. 

‘It’s ugly. It’s just ugly. It’s too much,’ Kye Rowan, who described herself as an ‘ordinary citizen,’ said. 

‘And I am grieving about the East Wing and how it was torn down,’ she said, adding, ‘I won’t be able to show this to my grandkids when I take them to D.C. one day. This has just been a total shame.’

Jamilah Way, a planning attorney who said she was commenting as a member of the public, said, ‘Every time I see the images of the White House as it currently sits, my stomach turns.’ 

Two witnesses suggested that Trump simply build his ballroom underground.

The National Capital Planning Commission, one of the two panels that must approve President Donald Trump’s ballroom (left), held an online-only meeting on Thursday. There will still some drama and every witness except one viewed the project negatively 

The construction site at the White House where the East Wing previously stood. President Donald Trump is hoping to fasttrack the construction of a massive White House ballroom, hoping for its completion by the end of his term

‘If President Trump wants his ballroom, he can have it like the Capitol Visitor Center, put it underground,’ said witness Chris Brown. ‘This solution preserves the integrity of White House grounds, while giving the President the space for entertaining he desires and he can have any size ballroom as long as it’s underground.’ 

‘I’m sure the objection to this would be that it’s too late to start over,’ Brown added. ‘But whose fault would that be?’ 

Brown also likened the two large flags Trump had installed at the White House to those ‘usually seen in used car lots.’ 

And one duo from Caracas, Venezuela, pitched the committee on building a ‘freedom dome’ instead.  

The meeting ended with the NCPC commissioners tabling a vote on the ballroom project until its April 2 gathering. 

Commission staff then made clear that Thursday’s meeting was the only opportunity for members of the public to have their voices heard.