Donald Trump recently showed off the construction site of the upcoming White House ballroom. The project will cost an estimated $400 million.
However, the president stressed that taxpayers won't be footing the bill. Instead, Trump revealed that he and other donors will be covering the costs for the project. He called it a gift to the American people.
"All of this was paid for by myself," Trump told reporters of the project. "This is a gift to the United States of America. and more than a gift. It's going to be one of the most beautiful buildings that's ever been built in the country. In Washington, D.C."
The ballroom proved to be controversial at best with a large portion of the American population opposed to the project and the destruction of the White House's East Wing. The National Trust for Historic Preservation even sued over the project to try to halt construction.
While Trump says that he is fitting the bill for the actual ballroom, the administration is asking for $1 billion in additional security measures for the White House grounds. That has hit a bit of a snag in Congress for various reasons.
Trump Talks Project
"There will never be another building like this built, that I can tell you," Trump told reporters. The president said that the building will be drone-proof. "If a drone hits it, it bounces off, it won't have any impact, but it's also meant as a drone port, so it protects all of Washington, the roof of the building."
Trump further described the ballroom building as six stories underground with a complex layout.
"The roof goes with the ground floor, the ground floor goes with the roof. The roof also goes down into the basement," the president said. "This is one well-knit building. One thing doesn't work without the other."
Trump stressed that he's not building the ballroom for himself. He says that it won't be finished until he is almost out of office.
White House spokesperson Davis Ingle also weighed in on the showcase.
"President Trump is the most transparent president of all time and was excited to showcase to the press and American people the amazing gift he is giving to the White House and generations of future presidents to come," Ingle said.
