Overview
- The White House has demolished the East Wing and says a roughly 90,000-square-foot ballroom costing about $300 million will be privately financed.
- First Lady Melania Trump privately raised concerns over tearing down the wing and told associates it was not her project, according to the Wall Street Journal.
- Formal design filings have not been submitted to the NCPC; officials argue demolition required no prior approval and note the White House’s legal exemptions from standard reviews.
- A released donor list features major tech firms, crypto companies and defense contractors, prompting pay-to-play criticism from preservationists and ethics experts, and at least one lawsuit has been reported.
- Offices displaced by the teardown, including the First Lady’s staff, have been moved into rooms inside the Executive Mansion and to the Eisenhower Executive Office Building.