1. United States
2. Texas
3. Letter

Vote no on the $1 billion in taxpayer funding for the White House ballroom project included in the reconciliation package. President Trump promised in October this ballroom would be "paid for 100% by me and some friends of mine" and cost taxpayers nothing. That promise is now broken. Calling this "security funding" doesn't change what it is. The Justice Department's own filing shows these so-called security features include missile-resistant steel columns, military-grade venting, drone-proof ceilings, and bomb shelters that create a "fortified structural buffer" protecting the ballroom itself. This is ballroom construction dressed up as security spending. A federal judge already ruled in March that building this ballroom without congressional authorization violates the law. My tax dollars should not bail out a private vanity project after wealthy donors apparently won't cover the full cost. If the administration wants to raise $400 million in private donations for a ballroom, they can raise money for its security features too. Strip this $1 billion from the bill.