1. United States
2. Iowa
3. Letter

Trump’s Own Words Condemn This Bill: Not One Taxpayer Dollar for a Presidential Ballroom Dear Representative, Last October, President Donald Trump declared he was “honored to be the first President to finally get this much-needed project underway — with zero cost to the American Taxpayer,” promising the White House ballroom would be funded entirely by private donors, corporations, and himself. That promise lasted until a federal judge blocked the project and a weekend shooting gave Republicans the political cover they needed to reverse course. Now Senators Graham, Britt, and Schmitt want taxpayers to pay $400 million for it instead. The promise was a lie, the reversal is shameless, and you should oppose this bill in every form it takes. The timeline tells the whole story. Trump demolished the historic East Wing of the White House without congressional authorization. A federal judge ruled in March that the project could not proceed without congressional approval. Facing that legal wall, Republicans are now rushing to hand Trump $400 million in public funds and retroactively legitimize construction that was already illegal. He broke the law, got caught, and is now asking Congress to make taxpayers clean up the mess. That is not how a democracy is supposed to work. The security argument collapses under the simplest scrutiny. The ballroom would seat a maximum of 1,000 guests. The White House Correspondents’ Dinner that Republicans are using to justify this bill had approximately 2,600 attendees. This facility would not have accommodated that event. The problem it claims to solve is one it cannot actually solve. What it would do is give this administration complete control over who gets access to major Washington events, on White House grounds, under Secret Service authority the President directs. That is worth asking hard questions about, particularly from a president who has shown little interest in the peaceful transfer of power. To make matters worse, Graham has not ruled out burying this $400 million in a reconciliation bill specifically designed to bypass the 60-vote Senate threshold that protects the minority’s ability to be heard. A luxury construction project that the President himself promised would cost taxpayers nothing should not be rammed through Congress on a party-line vote using parliamentary maneuvers designed for emergency spending. Oppose this bill in every form. Speak out against using reconciliation to fund it. And hold this administration accountable for demolishing a piece of American heritage without authorization and then expecting the public to pay for what comes next. Your constituents are watching, and your oath demands better. Respectfully,