Democrats vying for a blue wave in November are pouncing on voter angst over President Trump’s costly federal beautification projects that will spend billions while Americans struggle to afford groceries and gas.
A gilded arch, a massive ballroom, a stone sculpture garden, and a reflecting pool and golf course makeovers in the nation’s capital threaten to sour voters on the GOP agenda that many believe fell short of the 2024 pledge to improve affordability for the working class.
Amid a war in Iran that has hiked inflation to 3.8% and spiked gasoline prices to above $4.50 a gallon, Mr. Trump has flaunted the redecoration of the historic Oval Office with 24-karat gold accents and furnishings.
While privately funded, the gilded office conveys an ultra-rich appearance that turns off those struggling to make ends meet, say Democrats.
“The American people now spend well over $32 billion in more money towards gas and diesel since the beginning of this war, and this president is just continuing to put gold up all over the White House, trying to build this giant arch and other things,” said Sen. Andy Kim, New Jersey Democrat. “The people back home said a line that really struck me. They said, ’What about us?’”
Mr. Trump has brushed aside the criticism of his federal beautification projects.
This month, he boasted about the new East Wing construction underway on the grounds of the White House. The project will include a massive, ornate ballroom with a steel “drone-proof” roof and an underground area six stories deep that will accommodate a military hospital, research facilities and meeting rooms.
The $400 million ballroom is privately funded with his own money and donor contributions, Mr. Trump reminded reporters touring the project recently.
“This is a gift,” he said. “This is not going to be paid for by the taxpayer.”
But he’s undermined that claim by requesting from the GOP-led Congress an additional $1 billion in federal funds for White House security infrastructure, some of it associated with the new ballroom.
The funding request set up an easy pitch for House and Senate Democrats eager to stir a midterm election backlash by cash-strapped voters opposed to the president’s federal spending on the lavish ballroom and other projects.
In addition to the ballroom, the president has ordered a $250 million “Triumphal Arch” near the Lincoln Memorial, the complete overhaul of a D.C. public golf course, a $40 million sculpture garden honoring 250 prominent Americans and a renovation of the Washington Monument reflecting pool that has ballooned in cost to $13 million.
“While Democrats are fighting to lower Americans’ costs, Republicans are fighting like hell to waste billions of dollars on things taxpayers do not want, do not need and certainly should not be forced to pay for,” said Senate Democratic leader Charles E. Schumer of New York.
Democrats have nicknamed the GOP “Ballroom Republicans,” and are hoping the moniker will stick through November, when the party aims to flip both chambers to take control of Congress.
Voter surveys show the public largely opposes the ballroom, but its size has been greatly exaggerated by the media and opponents.
A recent Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos Poll found 56% of voters did not approve of the ballroom project, but pollsters vastly overstated the size, describing it to those surveyed as “a 90,000 square foot ballroom.”
The ballroom will be less than a third of that size and will measure 22,000 square feet when completed.
It will be part of the new 89,000-square-foot East Wing now under construction, where office space for the first lady and White House staff, as well as a movie theater, is planned.
In the same poll, 52% of voters said they oppose the Triumphal Arch.
Mr. Trump ordered the extra-tall arch — 250 feet in height from the base of the memorial to the tip of a golden winged-figure’s torch — to commemorate America’s 250th anniversary this year.
A majority of Democrats and independents oppose the ballroom and the arch. A majority of Republicans back the two projects.
Republicans in Congress, struggling to show voters they are focused on affordability, are squirming at the $1 billion security funding request, even though $220 million of the total is connected to the ballroom project.
The GOP-led Senate has yet to find a pathway to approve the funding, and Republicans have stated privately and publicly that the federal government shouldn’t pay any of it.
Senate Republican leaders tried to attach the $1 billion to a must-pass spending bill but stripped it out over the parliamentarian’s objection and threats by several GOP lawmakers that they would sink the bill if it was included.
Mr. Thune defended the president’s request, noting most of the money is for beefing up White House security.
The president has faced three serious assassination attempts in less than two years, most recently at the Washington D.C. Hilton, where a gunman attempted to storm the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner.
At the same time, Mr. Thune acknowledged the difficulty of seeking Republican approval for money associated with the ballroom project ahead of the midterm elections.
“I understand the politics around it,” he said. “We are in a political season.”
Mr. Trump appeared deaf to the criticism during a recent media tour of the project. He touted the security additions that encompass the East Wing: The roof will accommodate sniper lookouts and a port for launching drones, and the building will be constructed of extra-heavy concrete, which will make it missile-proof.
“What we have is the safest building ever built, in my opinion,” the president said over the racket of construction noise as he overlooked the project.
The ballroom, scheduled for completion in 2028, will safely accommodate state dinners and other large White House events that in the past were crammed into lawn tents, he reminded reporters.
“This is really for other presidents. This is not for me,” Mr. Trump said. “This is my gift to the United States of America.”
