Senate GOP Dumps Trump’s Unpopular $1 Billion Ballroom from Their Reconciliation Bill

WASHINGTON, DC - American taxpayers who are being financially squeezed by President Trump's reckless agenda should not be forced to pay $1 billion for an unnecessary, gaudy, gilded ballroom.

Today, the U.S. Senate took a step toward blocking a $1 billion ballroom boondoggle after Republican leaders opted to pull the funding for Trump's White House ballroom request upon realizing the project lacked support and many Republican senators did not want to have to go on record backing the irresponsible project.

U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) says the Republican attempt to take $1 billion from taxpayers for the ballroom was wrong from the start and the national security claims did not add up. Senator Reed urged Republicans to start focusing on more pressing priorities, such as increasing the supply of affordable housing, health care, as well as gas and grocery prices. He also says any new White House construction must follow the required rules and meet historic preservation standards.

"President Trump's policies continue to drive up costs and make life more expensive for everyday Americans. It was obscene for Congressional Republicans to try to force taxpayers to pay $1 billion for President Trump's glitzy ballroom. This ballroom is not about national security, it is about Donald Trump's vanity and his attempt to flout the law and skirt the rules.

"It's another example of the President putting his personal aggrandizement ahead of the needs of every day Americans. He abruptly demolished the historic East Wing with no permits, no authorization, and no abatement of hazardous materials, which are all required by federal law. He bypassed environmental laws and had contaminated construction waste dumped off at a public golf course. And he continues to flout ethics rules and withhold information about foreign donors, foreign steel, and solicitations for the project. If this ballroom were on the up-and-up why is President Trump withholding the basic facts from the public?

"For now, the U.S. Senate stopped the president from raiding the Treasury for his gilded ballroom. I urge Republicans to join Democrats in demanding real oversight, transparency, and accountability."

It is unclear what Republicans' next steps will be, but a federal judge ruled against the Trump Administration earlier this year that the project had not been properly authorized by lawmakers.

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