Republicans in Congress on Monday renewed efforts to approve and pay for President Donald Trump’s proposed White House ballroom, arguing the project would help avert security breaches after a shooting at Saturday’s White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, according to the Associated Press. The new push came as Rep. Lauren Boebert and Republican Sens. Rand Paul and Tim Sheehy said they would press additional measures tied to the ballroom plan.
The centerpiece of the effort is legislation introduced by Republican senators that would authorize $400 million for construction and security infrastructure underneath the ballroom, AP reported. Graham, one of the bill’s sponsors, said at a news conference that he believes private dollars Trump has said could pay for the ballroom should be limited to items such as what he described as “buying china and stuff like that.”
Graham argued that the ballroom is necessary for the president to hold events safely and to avoid less secure alternatives, AP said. He pointed to Saturday’s dinner location at the Washington Hilton and said “It would be insane” to hold the event there again, adding that he would advise any president not to do it even as Trump said he would like the dinner to be rescheduled.
In AP reporting, Graham also described the security concerns raised by the dinner attack. Authorities said the man who tried to storm the dinner with guns and knives had reserved a room in the hotel, according to an FBI affidavit filed in the case. Graham said the threat environment now feels different from past events, describing “the sense of threat that exists today” as something he said he has never felt before.
The renewed ballroom push unfolded as Cole Tomas Allen appeared in court Monday to face federal charges of attempting to assassinate Trump after Saturday’s dinner encounter in which shots were fired outside the ballroom. AP reported that Trump was evacuated off the stage as thousands of guests dived under tables and ducked for cover.
Other lawmakers, including Sheehy, linked their support for the ballroom effort to broader concerns about attacks and threats against officials. Sheehy said on X that it is “an embarrassment to the strongest nation on earth” that the country cannot host gatherings in Washington, including ones attended by the president, without threats of violence and attempted assassinations.
Democrats opposed the ballroom construction, citing that Trump demolished part of the White House to make way for it without permission from Congress and that the plan has faced lawsuits, according to AP. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries told reporters that Trump should focus on ending the war with Iran, healthcare and other measures aimed at driving down living costs, saying, “These are the things that we should actually be focused on.”
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer criticized what he said was the president’s desire to isolate himself in a “walled palace, literally,” AP reported. He said Republicans should instead pass a spending bill that includes money for the U.S. Secret Service, which is part of the Homeland Security Department and has been shut down for more than two months. Schumer said Republicans should “join Democrats in funding the Secret Service” rather than support “Donald Trump’s luxury ballroom,” and he said the House has not yet acted on two Homeland Security spending bills approved by the Senate.
Republicans also used the dinner shooting to call for Homeland Security funding, blaming Democrats who have blocked money for immigration enforcement agencies since mid-February, AP reported. The chaos at the annual dinner came after Trump has faced two attempts on his life and as members of Congress in both parties have received increasing numbers of death threats in recent years, AP said.
Alabama Sen. Katie Britt, who sponsored the legislation with Graham, said the measure was not just about Trump. Britt said, “This will not be done until the end of his term,” and added, “This is about future presidents. This is about our nation having a place to gather.” AP reported it remains unclear whether the effort will get enough support in Congress.