President Donald Trump took some time away from rage-posting on Mother’s Day to hype up his MAGA makeover projects.
The president posted to Truth Social on Sunday, sharing images of work on both his White House ballroom and D.C.’s Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool.
Construction on his $400 million ballroom, for which the president demolished the entire East Wing, was temporarily halted last month by a District Court Judge, but was ultimately allowed to continue after an appeals court reversed the decision. Construction is now expected to carry on until the next hearing on June 5.
“The Magnificent Ballroom, under construction, and ahead of schedule, at the White House!” the 79-year-old wrote about the ballroom’s construction on Truth Social on Sunday.
Attached was an image of the ballroom, similar to a computer-generated mockup the president had previously presented to the press in a bizarre display aboard Air Force One. Four hours later, he shared an AI-generated image of himself standing in front of a completed, fully lit ballroom, posted by a supporter. “It is going up fast!!!” he assured them.
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.
Costs for the ballroom have ballooned since its initial announcement, rising from an estimated $200 million to $400 million. Trump attempted to explain the shocking increase in a rambling Truth Social post on Wednesday.
“The only reason the cost has changed is because, after deep rooted studies, it is approximately twice the size, and a far higher quality, than the original proposal, which would not have been adequate to handle the necessary events, meetings, and even future Inaugurations,” Trump wrote.
“The original price was 200 Million Dollars, the double sized, highest quality completed project will be something less than 400 Million Dollars. It will be magnificent, safe, and secure! This was a necessary change, it was done long ago, but the Fake News failed to report it, trying to make it look like there was a cost overrun. Actually, it is coming in ahead of schedule, and under budget!”
While the president has assured Americans that the ballroom will be privately funded, Senate Republicans are now seeking approximately $1 billion in taxpayer money to finance “security adjustments and upgrades” for the project.
“Due in part to the recent assassination attempt on President Trump at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, the proposal would provide the United States Secret Service with the resources they need to fully and completely harden the White House complex,” White House spokesperson Davis Ingle told NPR.
In addition to the ballroom, the president is building a defensive bunker underneath the East Wing, replacing a World War II-era facility built by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
While also celebrating his ballroom on Truth Social, Trump on Sunday highlighted other renovations he has ordered around Washington, D.C.
The president posted two images related to the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool; one showing workers painting the pool, and one showing a mockup of what the pool will look like once it has been painted “American Flag Blue.”
A New York Times report found that the $6.9 million contract for the project was awarded to a Virginia-based company that had renovated the pool at Trump’s golf course in Virginia, despite the company never having received a federal contract before.
In order to award the no-bid contract, the White House invoked an exemption designed to be used in urgent situations in order to prevent “serious injury, financial or other, to the government,” according to the Times’ report.
In a statement to the Times, White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers did not provide examples of how the paint job would prevent injury, instead explaining that the president wanted the renovation completed by July 4th.
“This project is now being completed at ‘Trump speed’ to ensure the iconic landmark is totally restored ahead of the 250th celebrations,” Rogers said.
The ballroom and the reflecting pool are just two of the many renovations Trump has planned for the nation’s capital.
Last summer, he bulldozed the White House’s Rose Garden and replaced it with a Mar-a-Lago-style patio, complete with patio furniture. The Lincoln Bathroom was also renovated in Trump’s preferred style, and is now made entirely of marble. The patio was on parade during a Mother’s Day celebration at the White House on Sunday.
Elsewhere at the White House, he has renovated the West Wing Colonnade, adding a “Presidential Walk of Fame” to the walkway, and redecorated the Oval Office to feature significantly more gold.
He has also added his name to the Kennedy Center and the Institute for Peace, and has hung up banners featuring his face at the Department of Justice and other government buildings.
In addition, the president has shared plans for a 250-foot Triumphal Arch for Memorial Circle near Arlington National Cemetery that, much like his ballroom, features gold accents and embellishments, as well as the words “One Nation Under God” emblazoned on the top.
An April Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll found that Americans’ approval of his ballroom remains at a low of 56 percent, while just 28 percent support the renovation, reflecting the same sentiments expressed in October.
The Washington Post also noted a significant “enthusiasm gap,” with almost three times as many people strongly opposing the project as strongly supporting it.
