Photo: McCrery Architects PLLC/whitehouse.gov
President Donald Trump’s political legacy may end up being disastrous for health care, scientific research, the national debt, and the environment, but his physical legacy — which is probably more important to him — will soon include adding a $200 million ballroom to the White House.
Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced the project on Thursday, calling it a “much needed and exquisite addition of 90,000 square feet.” Construction will begin in September with funding to come from Trump himself and “other patriot donors,” and they expect it to be finished while he’s still in office.
It’s Trump’s second attempt at building a big new ballroom at the White House; his first, during the Obama administration, was rebuffed by White House officials who were turned off by the idea of having a “shiny gold Trump sign … on any part of the White House.”
Now, he’ll get to leave behind as much fake gold as he likes. Along with his new oversize flagpoles and a Qatari-gifted Air Force One that will be fitted out with “gold trim,” Trump’s holy trinity of dictator-chic renovations is underway. The new ballroom, to be built where the East Wing currently sits, appears to be the crowning piece. Images released by the White House suggest it will look a lot like Mar-a-Lago — heavy on the gold and white with crystal chandeliers, Corinthian columns, gold inlay in the ceiling, and gold floor lamps.
Many presidents have made changes at the White House; Gerald Ford even had a swimming pool installed using private donations. But Trump’s changes — an expansion that will significantly alter the way the White House looks and functions plus an aesthetic of over-the-top details more commonly known as tacky — won’t be like just leaving his stamp. It will be like rebranding the People’s House as yet another Trump estate.
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