At a state dinner for Chinese President Xi Jinping, Donald Trump invited guests, including Xi and his wife Peng Liyuan, to tour the East Wing ballroom construction site, possibly after the evening’s entertainment. Trump said the project was about a year from completion.
The planned 90,000-square-foot ballroom is designed for 650 seats, compared with 200 in the East Room. Trump has said he and other donors would pay its roughly $400 million cost. The contractor told the administration it would cost $600 million, with at least half expected to come from taxpayers, The Washington Post reported in June.
The administration faces a court challenge over its authority to demolish the East Wing without congressional approval; the Supreme Court ruled last month that construction could continue for now. The East Wing sits above a bunker dating to 1942. Administration court filings said bomb shelters, military installations and a medical facility would be added during construction; social-media users questioned the security implications of the tour offer.
