President Donald Trump’s long-discussed White House ballroom project has encountered a major obstacle.
According to Politico, Republican senators will not include in their immigration enforcement funding bill a $1 billion request from the Secret Service that would have gone toward Trump’s ballroom.
Republican Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana broke the news to reporters after Wednesday’s GOP lunch.
“We were told that the ballroom money is out,” Kennedy said.
For nearly a year, Trump’s ballroom odyssey has featured many twists and turns.
At first, the president spoke only of private funding for the project.
In fact, on Aug. 2, 2025, conservative activist Charlie Kirk — just one month and eight days before his assassination — posted a seven-second clip of Trump to the social media platform X.
“How many donors do you think it’s gonna take to get to $200 million?” a reporter asked.
“Maybe one,” the president replied. “Me.”
“He’s one of one and there will never be another,” Kirk wrote in praise of Trump.
Vintage President Trump 😂😂
Q: How many donors will it take to pay for the new White House ballroom?
TRUMP: “Maybe just one. Me.”
He’s one of one and there will never be another. pic.twitter.com/xUVDZnkjsX
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) August 2, 2025
Then, several days after Kirk’s murder, Trump took questions from reporters.
“My condolences on the loss of your friend Charlie Kirk,” a reporter said in another clip posted to X. “Can I ask, Sir, how are you holding up over the last three-and-a-half days?”
“I think very good,” the president replied. “And by the way, right there, you see all the trucks. They just started construction of the new ballroom for the White House.”
Remember this?
Reporter:
“My condolences on the loss of your friend Charlie Kirk. How are you holding up?”
Trump:
“I think very good. And by the way, you see all the trucks? They just started construction of the new ballroom for the White House.” – Donald Trump pic.twitter.com/7ppE4QRh9J
— Bricktop_NAFO (@Bricktop_NAFO) December 7, 2025
Some conservatives pushed for Trump to name the ballroom after Kirk.
Meanwhile, Democrats drew a line in the sand. Some, in fact, made opposition to Trump’s ballroom a litmus test.
Then, in March, a federal judge ruled that even with private funding, Trump could not build the ballroom without approval from Congress.
Finally, the president and his allies made a renewed push for the ballroom following last month’s assassination attempt at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner in Washington, D.C.
GOP senators, however, remain reluctant.
Moreover, Trump’s decision to endorse Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton over Sen. John Cornyn in the Lone Star State’s Republican primary runoff next week irked those senators, according to Politico.
Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough also ruled over the weekend that the ballroom funding provision violated Senate rules.
That ruling prompted Trump to target the parliamentarian on social media.
“Over the years, she has been brutal to Republicans, but not so to the Dumbocrats — So why has she not been replaced?” the president wrote of MacDonough. “There are many fair people who would be qualified for that vital job.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota objected to Trump’s post.
“Obviously, it’s concerning when anybody gets targeted like that. But it’s, I guess, his opinion,” Thune said Wednesday, according to The Hill. “We’ll make sure everybody’s got security around here.”
Trump has not yet responded to the news that Senate Republicans will not fund the ballroom. Those senators, however, according to Politico, expect to incur the president’s wrath.
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