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White House Faces Backlash Over $250M Ballroom Construction

10/22/2025

Center

White House Ballroom Controversy

The White House has begun demolishing part of the East Wing to build a $250 million ballroom without approval from the National Capital Planning Commission.
Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defended project as necessary modernization.
Critics say the project is a politicized transformation of a historic building funded by private donors, raising corruption concerns.
Karine Jean-Pierre, former press secretary, criticized the project as selling "The People's House" to wealthy contributors.

Right

Leavitt Defends White House

Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, called HuffPost journalist S.V. Dáte a "left-wing hack" after his question about President Donald Trump's meeting with Russian President Putin in Budapest and the 1994 Ukraine agreement.
Leavitt dismissed Dáte's questions as biased, shared their text exchange, and criticized his reporting style.
Dáte's follow-up article sarcastically noted the White House's "wild response," and HuffPost defended its journalism as requiring professional answers.

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White House Ballroom Controversy

The White House has begun demolishing part of the East Wing to build a $250 million ballroom without approval from the National Capital Planning Commission.
Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defended project as necessary modernization.
Critics say the project is a politicized transformation of a historic building funded by private donors, raising corruption concerns.
Karine Jean-Pierre, former press secretary, criticized the project as selling "The People's House" to wealthy contributors.

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