First Lady Melania Trump has expressed concerns about the extensive renovation of the White House East Wing, now reduced to rubble.
The demolition was undertaken to make way for a lavish, gold-adorned ballroom on the White House premises—a long-held vision of President Trump.
The complete dismantling of the over 120-year-old wing was accomplished in just a few days, with debris now being cleared from the site.
During the construction process, Melania privately voiced her apprehensions about the expansive project to her close associates, as reported by administration officials to the Wall Street Journal.
At 55, she has been consistently reminding confidants that she is not behind the remodel, seeking to distance herself from the destruction of the historic office traditionally occupied by the First Lady.
Her office has yet to respond to the Daily Mail’s request for comment, and the White House has not provided details on Melania’s role in the remodeling.
Adding 90,000 square feet to the White House compound, the wing, as it’s currently designed, will be expected to accommodate around 1,000 guests standing and 650 seated.
The ballroom’s $300 million estimated price tag will be paid for by donors and himself, Trump claims. Already, there’s controversy swirling over what the new addition will be named, and some think it may be named after the President, though he denies those reports.
First Lady Melania Trump has reportedly expressed concern about the East Wing’s demolition and has been distancing herself from the project
An excavator works to clear rubble after the East Wing of the White House was demolished on October 23
The President destroyed the 120-year-old East Wing to create room for a 90,000 square foot glistening gold ballroom that can host an estimated 1,000 people standing and 650 seated
‘I don’t have any plan to call it after myself. That was fake news. Probably going to call it the presidential ballroom or something like that,’ Trump said over the weekend.
The Republican President has wanted to create a regal event space on the White House grounds for at least 15 years.
In 2010, when Barack Obama was president, Trump called the Democrats’ chief strategist David Axelrod to pitch the politico on a revamped ballroom.
‘He said, “You have these state dinners in sh***y little tents,”‘ Axelrod told the WSJ.
‘He said, “I build ballrooms. I build the most beautiful ballrooms in the world. You can come to Florida and see for yourself.”‘
Axelrod recounted telling Trump, ‘We’re in the middle of a recession, I’m not sure about this.’
The idea stalled there until the President’s first term.
According to former administration officials, Trump wanted to build the ballroom during his first term but was hampered by other projects.
During that time, he redid the White House sports complex installed by Obama, which included a basketball hoop and tennis court. Trump had a tennis pavilion built to expand the area in 2020.
A worker clears rubble after the East Wing of the White House was demolished
Heavy machinery is used on the remaining portion of the East Wing of the White House as the site is cleared
Despite the tricky construction and permitting process required to redo historic homes, the White House is an exception.
This term, Trump has bulldozed ahead with the ballroom plans and cleverly crafted a board of important overseers to swiftly approve his redesign for the centuries-old executive mansion.
In July, Trump’s team terminated three members of a 12-person board that oversees construction at the White House, called the National Capital Planning Commission.
The quarter who were removed were appointees installed by former president Joe Biden.
Then Trump installed board members loyal to him, who have since approved the ballroom, meaning the plans sped through the approval process.
