President Donald Trump gave reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday an update on his White House ballroom project. He said that that the military is building a “massive complex” beneath the new structure.
Trump said that the project is “under construction, and we’re doing very well, so we’re ahead of schedule,” Newsweek reported. “The ballroom essentially becomes a shed for what’s being built under,” Trump said.
Construction began on the new ballroom project last October. To make way for the massive new space, the entire East Wing — built in 1902 — was demolished. The 90,000-square-foot building is projected to cost $400 million.
The president told reporters the military’s plan had been leaked because of what he called a “stupid lawsuit.”
The National Trust for Historic Preservation filed suit in December 2025 to halt the ballroom’s construction. The organization claims the government has not complied with laws requiring a mandated review processes and public comment period.
Trump shared renderings of the ballroom’s exterior February 4 on Truth Social. He said the new structure “replaces the very small, dilapidated, and rebuilt many times, East Wing, with a magnificent New East Wing, consisting of a glorious Ballroom that has been asked for by Presidents for over 150 years.”
Feature rendering of White House Ballroom exterior courtesy Donald J. Trump/Truth Social
