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Split Supreme Court Allows Trump Ballroom Construction That Chief Justice Calls 'Likely Unlawful'
"The White House belongs to the people, but Trump consistently acts like it belongs to him alone," said one watchdog, calling out the court's majority for allowing construction on "this illegal project."
Aug 31, 2026
US Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts recently let construction on President Donald Trump's White House ballroom continue in a temporary solo decision, but on Monday he sided with the three liberals against the five right-wingers who allowed the project to proceed during a legal battle.
The Trump administration sought intervention from the nation's top court after the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia upheld a district judge's ruling that halted above-ground construction but permitted work on an underground bunker and other "national security facilities." Roberts then paused the appellate decision but also sought a review from all justices.
The five justices behind the majority's Monday decision, including Trump's three appointees, concluded the administration "is likely to prevail" in showing that the National Trust for Historic Preservation—which is challenging parts of the widely contested project that's already destroyed the East Wing of the White House—lacks standing.
"This court has not found standing in circumstances like these before. To the contrary, we have repeatedly held that mere offense, disagreement, or distaste does not qualify as a concrete and particularized injury under Article III," the majority wrote, referring to the portion of the US Constitution that addresses the judicial system.
"The government has also established that it will likely suffer irreparable harm from the district court's injunction and that the balance of the equities tips in its favor," the majority added in its unsigned order, which signaled that the merits of the case should continue to be examined by lower courts.
Meanwhile, writing for himself and the liberal justices, Roberts said that the construction "is likely unlawful," given that Congress has not passed legislation authorizing the project, and pointed to the trust's executive committee member Alison K. Hoagland.
"As a Capitol Hill resident, Hoagland regularly visits the White House to take in the historic building's beauty and to appreciate its symbolism. By overshadowing the traditional White House, Hoagland explains, the new ballroom will detract from the building's
message of republican simplicity and thereby worsen her viewing experience," he wrote. "Hoagland's injury suffices for standing."
The high court's majority "misconceives the plaintiff's injury, allowing the executive's likely infringement of the legislature's power of the purse and authority to regulate federal property in the District of Columbia to continue," Roberts added. "Today's decision is no victory for the separation of powers."
The president cheered the majority's decision, writing on his Truth Social platform:
I am pleased to report that the United States Supreme Court has just ruled in favor of the Ballroom/Military Complex being built without any further contingency, doubt, or threat. We are living in the Golden Age of America, and this Building will be one of the Greatest ever constructed in Washington, D.C. When completed in the Summer of 2028, the magnificent Ballroom and Military Complex will be something that the entire Country is very proud of. The Project, despite the baseless lawsuit brought by the so-called National Trust for Historic Preservation of the United States, which is not in any way affiliated with the United States Government, is under budget and ahead of schedule. The Ballroom is totally funded by Great Patriots and Corporations and, therefore, is a Gift — At no cost to the American Taxpayer.
Critics continued to condemn the project after the decision, with US Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.) stressing on Bluesky that "the president's vanity project does nothing to benefit anyone but Donald J. Trump himself."
"Not a penny to lower your costs," the senator reminded Americans. "This has been a ridiculous waste of taxpayer dollars from the start."
Jon Golinger, democracy advocate at the watchdog group Public Citizen, said in a statement that "in light of this disappointing decision by the court, the next Congress must make investigating Trump's illegal ballroom project and everyone involved with funding and facilitating it a top priority."
Both chambers of Congress are narrowly controlled by Trump's Republican Party, and some GOP lawmakers even tried to boost the project. However, Democrats are aiming to reclaim majorities in the Senate and House of Representatives in the November midterm elections—and if they succeed, they could probe the ballroom and various other concerns from his second presidency.
"Trump suffers from a crippling case of 'palace-envy' and who knows what national treasure he'll demolish next to try to build himself another gold-plated monument," warned Golinger. "For now, we will keep digging into and exposing Trump's ballroom funding schemes, through which he raked in millions from corporations with billions in government contracts and anonymous donors with unknown agendas."
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Supreme Court Lets Trump Ballroom Construction Continue—For Now
"We call upon the court to hold President Trump accountable and affirm a fundamental principle on which this country was founded: No one, not even a president, is above the law," responded one watchdog leader.
Aug 21, 2026
US Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts on Friday allowed construction on President Donald Trump's White House ballroom project to continue while a legal battle plays out.
The Trump administration filed an appeal seeking an emergency intervention from the high court last week, after the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia upheld a district judge's ruling, halting above-ground construction while allowing work on an underground bunker and other "national security facilities."
Roberts issued a one-page order announcing the administrative stay, which blocks the appellate court's preliminary injunction, pending further consideration by him and the other justices.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation is challenging the contentious project, which is slated to cost hundreds of millions of dollars and has already resulted in workers demolishing the East Wing of the White House.
After Roberts' ruling, a spokesperson for the organization told Courthouse News, "To be clear, this is not a final decision on the merits of the government's stay application, and we await further action."
National Trust's president and CEO, Brent Leggs, said earlier this week that "the executive branch lacks unilateral authority to destroy or transform the White House, and cannot use national security as a justification for ignoring the Constitution."
Various groups and federal lawmakers have echoed the organization's argument that under the US Constitution, "Congress, not the executive, holds the nation's purse strings," and Trump's "plan to fund the ballroom with private donations cannot stand," as the Campaign Legal Center and Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) wrote in a Tuesday amicus brief.
Responding to Roberts' decision, Lisa Gilbert, co-president of the watchdog group Public Citizen, said in a statement that "the ballroom is a microcosm of a hundred different issues with the Trump administration. This president has usurped the powers reserved for Congress by the Constitution and flouted the law at every turn."
"The White House belongs to the people, not to the president himself," she stressed. "We call upon the court to hold President Trump accountable and affirm a fundamental principle on which this country was founded: No one, not even a president, is above the law."
Meanwhile, her colleague Jon Golinger, a democracy advocate at Public Citizen, emphasized that "everything Trump demolishes can be rebuilt. Every place he breaks can be fixed. Every space he pollutes can be fumigated."
Golinger vowed that "we will keep investigating and exposing Trump's shady ballroom funding schemes to rake in millions from corporations with billions in government contracts and anonymous donors with hidden agendas."
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Democrats, Legal Groups Urge Supreme Court to Block Trump Ballroom Without Congressional OK
"The Constitution's system of checks and balances ensures that no individual or branch of government holds absolute power," said one legal expert. "The president is ignoring this design."
Aug 18, 2026
Just days after President Donald Trump's administration asked the right-wing US Supreme Court to allow construction of a new White House ballroom to continue while a legal challenge plays out, federal lawmakers and advocacy groups on Tuesday urged the justices to block any more work on the project absent congressional approval.
"The Constitution's system of checks and balances ensures that no individual or branch of government holds absolute power," said Trevor Potter, president of the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center, which filed an amicus brief with Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW).
"The president is ignoring this design by unilaterally demolishing the East Wing of the White House and trying to construct a massive ballroom with private funds, raising the risk of corruption that constitutional checks are supposed to prevent," he continued.
Potter stressed that "Congress, not the president, is empowered to raise and spend taxpayer dollars—and it has not authorized the ballroom. The administration's reliance on private donor funding for the ballroom project violates a core principle of separation of powers embedded in our Constitution."
CREW president Donald Sherman highlighted that "President Trump has spent his second term creating pay-to-play opportunities for corporations to curry favor and advance his personal priorities, without regard for the Constitution or the American people's best interests."
Trump kicked off his second term with an inauguration dubbed "a coronation of our country’s descent into oligarchy" because of the billionaires who got prime seating at the event. Since then, according to recent disclosures, he's pocketed at least $2.2 billion, over half of it from his family’s crypto scheming.
Amid alarm over Trump's enrichment of himself and his allies—and his plummeting approval rating—Sherman said that "the Supreme Court should deny the request for a stay and ensure that this administration isn't allowed to run roughshod over the separation of powers and dodge congressional approval for spending taxpayer dollars."
Sherman and Potter's groups were far from alone in filing a brief with that demand; dozens of Democrats who serve as ranking members of various committees across both chambers of Congress as well as the minority leader, whip, and caucus chair in the House of Representatives submitted a similar filing to the nation's top court.
The Democrats "understand that the Constitution empowers Congress—not the President—to control federal property, including
determining whether (and how) parts of the White House should be demolished or constructed," their lawyers wrote, noting that they previously sent a brief to US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, which earlier this month upheld a district judge's ruling that halted most construction.
The filing argues that the injunction should remain in place, and "the construction the president seeks should not proceed until Congress authorizes that construction and appropriates the funds for it," an event that is unlikely during this session, even with the GOP's narrow control of both chambers.
Welcoming the lawmakers' brief, Jon Golinger, democracy advocate at the watchdog group Public Citizen, asked, "If President Trump is so proud of his Golden Ballroom, why is he so afraid to ask Congress to approve it?"
"A key reason the Constitution requires Congress to authorize the White House ballroom project is to ensure transparency and oversight of the '$335 million of an expected $400 million' that the White House says it's raised from donors, including corporations who have been awarded billions in government contracts and anonymous donors with secret agendas," Golinger said.
"We agree that by law Congress needs to authorize it and urge the court to reject the White House's desperate 'Hail Mary' pass," he added. "The Supreme Court is expected to decide by this Friday whether to intervene in the ballroom case or to allow the Court of Appeals injunction to take effect, which would block further ballroom construction unless and until Congress authorizes it."
The National Trust for Historic Preservation, which is behind the legal challenge to the project, also sent its arguments against Trump's ballroom on Tuesday. The group's president and CEO, Brent Leggs, noted that "last week, the administration made two audacious claims in asking the US Supreme Court to greenlight continued aboveground construction of the White House ballroom."
"First, that no court in the land has the authority to stop them," he explained. "And second, that because they are using the same indestructible concrete used in nuclear power plants, it would be impossible to remove the ballroom even if ordered to do so. They are working around the clock in an attempt to outrace judicial review."
Leggs said that in its filing, his group "reiterated that the administration has no unilateral legal authority—constitutional, statutory, or otherwise—to build a ballroom on the site of the now-demolished East Wing, unless and until Congress expressly approves. Each court that has reviewed this case has agreed with the National Trust. We hope the Supreme Court will uphold the rule of law by stopping this illegal project."
"Our position was supported by several amicus briefs, including one from the Society for the Rule of Law and former Republican White House lawyers," he added. "These briefs highlight the point the National Trust has made for months: The executive branch lacks unilateral authority to destroy or transform the White House, and cannot use national security as a justification for ignoring the Constitution."
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'Block This Wasteful Spending' Khanna Says of Trump Plan to Drop $900 Million on White House Construction
"This is money they're taking out of your healthcare, your jobs, and your education," the California Democrat noted, calling on Republicans in Congress "to do their jobs."
Aug 12, 2026
Several Democrats in Congress on Wednesday blasted US President Donald Trump's plans to spend over $900 million—mostly taxpayer dollars—on construction projects on White House grounds, the details of which were first reported by The Washington Post.
"The Post previously reported that the projected cost of the East Wing construction alone was $600 million, with half coming from taxpayers," the newspaper detailed. Journalists reviewed confidential contracts and related planning documents that also "include the costs of upgrades to nearby Lafayette Square, construction of a helipad, a new visitor screening center, and other previously reported projects that would drive the total cost of work on the grounds to at least $927 million."
While the Post highlighted how the administration has "sidestepped Congress and shielded visibility into what would become the most expensive overhaul" of the property in decades, the White House declined to answer the newspaper's questions and claimed that the money is being spent in a "manner consistent with" congressional intent.
"President Trump continues to implement long-overdue and necessary renovations to beautify the People's House as we celebrate our great Nation’s 250th anniversary of independence," said White House spokesperson Davis Ingle. "Thanks to the Builder-in-Chief, the White House will be properly glorified and remain in excellent condition for generations to come."
The report came amid a court battle over Trump's proposed ballroom—for which he's already demolished the East Wing—and just days after journalist Scott MacFarlane revealed that, according to internal documents from the National Park Service, massive sums of money have been diverted to fund assorted projects commissioned by the president.
Responding to the Post's article on Bluesky, US Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), a potential 2028 presidential candidate, said that "the price of Trump's ballroom keeps going up, and he has lied to Americans about how much taxpayers will pay for it. This is money they're taking out of your healthcare, your jobs, and your education. I am calling on Republicans to do their jobs and block this wasteful spending."
Both chambers of Congress are narrowly controlled by Republicans, but that could change after the November midterm elections. Other lawmakers joined Khanna in calling out Trump's priorities, as Americans struggle with the high cost of necessities, from gasoline and groceries to healthcare and housing.
"The same president who says there's no money for daycare or healthcare wants to hand you a nearly $1 billion tab for his personal playground," stressed Congressman Richard Neal (D-Mass.). "There's a golden age happening alright, but only for residents at the White House."
Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) said that "when it comes to Trump, everything must be bigger, shinier, and all about him—including the White House. He's turning a place that belongs to the American people into his very own DC Mar-a-Lago on the taxpayers' dime. And the price tag keeps going up. It’s now at least $900 million. This is crazy corruption and a massive grift on Americans."
As inflation continues to spiral out of control and gas prices remain well above $4, this is how Donald Trump is spending your taxpayer dollars. $900 million for a gilded ballroom at the White House. $0 to lower your costs. The Trump White House in a nutshell.
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— Chuck Schumer (@schumer.senate.gov) August 12, 2026 at 10:14 AM
The Post reporting coincided with the US Bureau of Labor Statistics announcing the latest inflation figures, which underscored the financial strain that American consumers are enduring under Trump and the GOP-controlled Congress. Democrats who shared the article on social media emphasized the current affordability crisis.
"Trump secretly transferred $500 million taxpayer dollars into shadowy accounts to fund his White House construction spree. He even redirected funds allocated by Congress to hire more Secret Service agents," said Congressman Gabe Amo (D-RI). "Americans can't afford gas and groceries, but this is Trump's priority."
Similarly, Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) said: "While families are struggling to afford groceries, gas, and rent, Trump is spending at least $900 million on his latest cosmetic project. Trump's priorities? Trump."
Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.) declared that "Trump isn't helping your household afford the basics. He's too busy spending your tax dollars making the White House a tacky mess."
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Scale of Trump's Raid on National Parks Funds for White House 'Vanity Projects' Revealed
"The National Park Service is being used as a piggy bank," said one critic.
Aug 10, 2026
Internal documents from the US National Park Service reportedly show that massive sums of money have been diverted to fund assorted projects commissioned by President Donald Trump.
According to a Sunday report from journalist Scott MacFarlane, NPS records show that $323 million has been rerouted to fund projects on the White House grounds this year alone, representing an increase of nearly 5,000% from the amount spend on such projects in 2024.
Additionally, the documents show NPS allotted nearly $100 million for projects on the Washington National Mall, a tenfold increase on the amount spent two years ago.
At the same time, the records show "multimillion-dollar reductions" in funding for several famous national parks, including Yellowstone, Yosemite, and Grand Canyon.
In fact, the total spending for projects at the White House and National Mall is larger than the combined spending at nine of the largest US national parks, MacFarlane found.
One anonymous federal employee who spoke with MacFarlane said that the spending shifts documented in internal records are "part of a pattern of the National Park Service being forced to prioritize Trump’s vanity projects over our own needs."
Tim Whitehouse, executive director of Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, similarly argued that "the National Park Service is being used as a piggy bank for Trump’s vanity projects," which he said was "costing the American people."
Some Democratic critics of Trump pounced on the report, which they said was the latest example of the president corruptly wasting taxpayer dollars.
"Let’s ask the American people," wrote Democrats on the US House Ways and Means Committee in a social media post, "would you rather have your nearest national park preserved and protected or another monument to Trump?"
Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), whose state has been hit by devastating wildfires this summer, accused the president of "raiding wildfire prevention funding to pay for his vanity projects."
Fred Wellman, a Democratic candidate for the US House of Representatives in Missouri, said that "Trump and his complicit Republican Congress have been robbing us to gild statues and build his private home without any oversight or approval."
"This is theft on a grand scale," Wellman added, "and all of us are paying for it."
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Rep. Jeffries' Actions Would Earn the Praise of Trump, Not the US People
By opposing impeachment, the Democratic House leader has acted in the interests of the corrupt US president and not the majority of his party's voters.
Jul 27, 2026
“Leader Jeffries, President Trump is calling.”
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY): “Hello, Mr. President, this is a rare occasion!”
Donald Trump: “Well, Hakeem, I want to have a confidential talk with you on a secure line. Agreed?”
HJ: “Sure, since you made the call.”
DT: “By the way, Hakeem, my Saudi friends tell me that your first name in Arabic means ‘wise.’”
HJ: “I try not to dwell on that, Mr. President.”
DT: “Funny! Here is why I am calling. To thank you for opposing Impeachment. You’ve shown amazing political courage by standing up to the vast majority of Democratic voters who want to impeach me, remove me, and more from my beautifully renovated White House (Trump House, as we call it in our inner circle). The people are screaming at your Democrats in local town meetings because, as you know, the Dems aren’t pushing for impeachment.”
DT: “Even more so, are the real guts you have in shutting down your House Democrats shouting for Impeachment now, especially after my remarks about destroying Iran’s 5,000 years of civilization in April. You also blocked them from signing on to Rep. John Larson’s (D-Conn.) treasonous Articles of Impeachment and shut him up as well. TREMENDOUS exercise of power, Hakeem! You’ve freed yourself from Crazy Nancy, who impeached me twice. I admire that and wanted to tell you that directly.”
HJ: “As you say, Mr. President,” (noncommittedly.)
DT: “Hakeem, I wouldn’t say this publicly, but it looks like you will be Speaker in January and by a comfortable margin. So, we’re going to have to DEAL with each other, right?”
“I assume so,” replied Jeffries, wondering what comes next.
DT: “Not on the big issues, like strong support for Israel and a big military budget. I like what you said a while back that Israel could be the Sixth Borough of New York. And you have happily accepted tons of dough from the AIPAC PACs, as we have.”
DT: “Over the years, you’ve backed bigger military budgets to keep our country strong and NO. 1! Keep doing that, and I’ll go along with a tough audit of the Pentagon budget, which I’m told will take four years… I’m also OK with restoring the cuts to Medicaid, food and energy assistance, and filling the empty seats in the regulatory agencies with the required number of Democrats OK'd by you.”
DT: “Plus, as Ronald Reagan did, I’ll propose a task force to come to a bipartisan agreement to shore up Social Security for our elderly. And Melania wants me to say that I’ll join you with a real child tax credit for 60 million kids.”
HJ: “Sounds good, Mr. President. Can you get your GOP up here to go along?”
DT: “I’ll take care of them. With Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.), we’ll keep them in line. As you say to your rebellious Dems, where are they going to go?”
DT: “By now, you’re probably wondering what I want in return to make it a Deal? I want you to stay with your opposition to any drive to Impeach. Explain it how you will—‘too distracting, too divisive, don’t have the two-thirds vote in the Senate, the people’s business is your priority, whatever.’ As you know, the Impeachment articles would bring up the Epstein smears, the so-called ‘Kitchen Table’ issues, and alleged non-enforcement of the laws. Also, the tax stuff with the IRS, the necessary spending directly by me for our great military actions abroad, and so on. I got matters pretty much under control with the backing of six Supreme Court justices, my veto, and pardon powers. What I can’t control, without drastic actions, is the impeachment power in Congress that is final and can’t be sent to the Supreme Court. I’m being very frank, here, Hakeem. And you know the ways I can fight back.”
DT: “Also, I don’t want you to oppose funding my beautiful White House ballroom and the greatest Arch in the world. Pretty modest requests, wouldn’t you agree, Hakeem?”
“It is too hypothetical for any response,” said Hakeem. “While I believe in compromise for the ‘greater good’ to be achieved, we have to wait until after November. Besides, as you falsely say about us, you are really trying every day to steal the elections. We also don’t know how pliable the incumbent Republicans will be to your demands. Many may blame you for their losses. I must stress that any understanding we arrive at has to be open and subject to consultation with our leadership.”
DT: “I’m not surprised by what you just said. Still, I think this exchange was worthwhile as a preview of any deal. Before closing—have my buddy Mike Johnson calling on the line again—I got to praise you for shutting down Rep. Jamie Raskin’s (D-Md.) toying with an ugly rogue hearing on impeachment by the Dems on the Judiciary Committee. That would have set me off BIG TIME! Unlike Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Raskin gets so much fawning press that it’s hard to attack him without the fake news media going bananas.”
DT: “I guess you just told him: ‘Raskin, either you’re part of the leadership or you’re on your own—NO IMPEACHMENT HEARING, you understand.’ And he took it, he took it. Great job, I must say.”
HJ: “No comment Mr. President. Thanks for your call. God Save America.”
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Trump Is the Vandal He's Been Looking For
President Donald Trump accuses vandals of sabotaging his efforts to refurbish the Reflecting Pool, but he and his administration are the ones sacking US democracy and its symbols.
Jun 23, 2026
“The pump don’t work ‘Cause the vandals took the handles.”—Bob Dylan, Subterranean Homesick Blues
Sometimes President Donald Trump’s diatribes reveal his own guilty behavior. Take his disastrous promotion of the makeover of the Reflecting Pool in Washington, DC. Not only did he hire an incompetent contractor whose prior work for Trump at Mar-a-Lago gave him the shady inside track, but also Trump’s insistence on an environmentally disastrous “royal blue” caused an increase in the amount of algae now polluting the pool. Perhaps it might be time to break out a new MAGA hat, all in green, with the words, “Make Algae Grow Again.”
Of course, neither Trump nor his buddy contractor would admit their malfeasance and responsibility for what has happened. Given Trump’s other corrupt vandalism of national sites in DC, why should we fleeced taxpayers and residents of the city expect accountability from such grifters? Instead, the predictable accusation by the Orange Menace is that vandals were the cause of the algae bloom. The real vandals, Trump and his enablers, were operating in plain sight and with presidential impunity.
Indeed, Trump’s vandalism has engulfed the White House and environs. From the destruction of the “Rose Garden” (heaven forbid that he would want to wake up and smell the roses) to leveling the East Wing for his ballroom and bunker (again, at the taxpayers’ expense), the wrecking of the grounds continues unabated. Added to this devastation was the garish Claw, erected for the UFC blood sport on the White House lawn. Oh, yeah, the lawn is gone. Perhaps to be replaced by what—a Circus Maximus!
As the decrepit old man occupying the White House tries to surround himself with imperial glitter and glory, his power is actually diminishing even as the damage, unfortunately, expands.
And speaking of Rome, the actual sacking of the city by the Vandals in 455 only lasted some two weeks. Trump’s pillaging of the federal government has lasted more than a year. While the most obvious physical vandalizing is very evident, buried in much of the legislation and executive orders is a massive amount of damage to people’s lives and the future of the country and the world.
Only now are we reckoning with the harm caused by Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill.”
Hundreds of thousands thrown off Medicaid, children and families denied basic foodstuffs. Trump and his Republican allies apparently aren’t even interested in offering “bread” along with the circuses that Trump revels in.
Meanwhile, Trump’s insane pal at Health and Human Services, brain-worm Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is sacking those doctors who believe in science in order to hire charlatans whose medicinal palliatives are hardly better than reading entrails. Eliminating tried and true medical practices, such as vaccines, has led to outbreaks of measles and will, undoubtedly, cause additional health problems.
And it should not be surprising that his toxic masculinist buddy, Pete Hegseth, the white Christian nationalist who occupies the office of the “Secretary of War,” now is overseeing a flu outbreak among the troops in the aftermath of making a vaccine “voluntary.” On the other hand, the 200-plus boaters murdered by Hegseth’s Pentagon pals in Latin America did not have the “luxury” of a choice about their well-being!
And speaking of well-being, the predictable worldwide deaths of people who relied on medical assistance from the United States was caused by DOGE’s slashing of international aide. Trump’s fellow vandal, the neo-Nazi Elon Musk, haughtily embraced such pillaging, seeing it as a way to extirpate empathy from any and all governmental policies.
Another fellow vandal on the world stage is Bibi Netanyahu. With the assistance of the US, Israel has committed genocide in Gaza. (As the historian Tacitus reflected on the depredations of the Roman military campaigns: “They made a desert and called it peace.”) The devastation wrought by these two bullies has spread to Lebanon and Iran. However, these vandals may have overplayed their hand in Iran.
Finally, one of the most egregious examples of Trump’s vandalism is sending out legions of armed thugs to cause murder and mayhem on the streets of major cities around the country. From Los Angeles to Minneapolis, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents harass, intimidate, and kidnap thousands of innocent people, sending many to prison hellholes built by the private corporate buddies of Trump.
As the decrepit old man occupying the White House tries to surround himself with imperial glitter and glory, his power is actually diminishing even as the damage, unfortunately, expands. Trump’s vandalism, and that of his enablers, will only be terminated when they are unceremoniously expelled to those islands of incarceration where others now languish.
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We Are Better Than This
President Donald Trump used the White House lawn to host a 21st-century cockfighting match where the birds were human beings. Is this rock bottom?
Jun 17, 2026
On Sunday night, President Donald Trump brought the country to a new low. The question is whether the nation has finally bottomed out—and realizes it.
On the White House lawn, Trump hosted Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) mixed martial arts cage matches. Fighters attacked each other with their fists, feet, knees, and elbows. Blood spewed everywhere; that was the point.
It wasn’t boxing; the combatants wore gloves with much less padding. It wasn’t professional wrestling; the injuries inflicted were real. It was billed as a sporting event, but as commentators observed, it was really 21st-century cockfighting where the birds are human beings.
Follow the Money
The UFC said that private funding totaling $60 million paid for the event. But it’s not clear that any private money covered the monumental work of the hundreds of staff from seven federal government agencies, or the estimated $10 to $12 million in supplemental security that the District of Columbia incurred (to be reimbursed from federally appropriated funds for federal events).
Fighters used the Executive Office Building and rooms in the White House as locker rooms. If not sacrilegious, it was something close.
Beyond the abuse of taxpayers’ dollars, Trump’s profiteering was pervasive.
- “Ultimate Fighting Championship” is a promotional company owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings. Trump owns stock in TKO Group Holdings.
- A day before the fights, Trump’s super PAC MAGA, Inc. held a $1 million-a-plate fundraiser at Trump’s Virginia golf club.
- Trump sold a line of Trump-branded UFC medallions for hundreds and—in some cases—thousands of dollars.
- World Liberty Financial was an official sponsor of the event. It’s a Trump-family-created crypto company and issued the stablecoins that some fighters received as bonuses.
- Other corporate sponsors included Crypto.com (its name appeared on each step leading into the cage), Bud Light, Polymarket, Monster Energy, Starlink, EasyPost, and Stake.
- Paramount Skydance, the media company owned by Larry and David Ellison, who are friendly with Trump, live streamed the event (behind a paywall). A few days earlier, Trump’s Justice Department approved Paramount’s merger with Warner Bros. Discovery, thereby bringing CBS, CNN, Paramount+, HBO Max, and a vast film and television studio under David Ellison’s control.
In a post-fight interview, a UFC winner yelled: “Michelle Obama is a man. Am I right America?”
How Far We Have Fallen
Worse than the event itself and Trump’s profiteering is the fact that it happened on White House grounds. While construction was underway, Marine One—the presidential helicopter—could not land on the South Lawn, its usual location. Fighters used the Executive Office Building and rooms in the White House as locker rooms. If not sacrilegious, it was something close.
President Thomas Jefferson first opened the White House lawn in 1801 when he invited the US Marine Corps Band to perform. Since then, it has been the scene of children’s Easter Egg Rolls (begun by President Rutherford B. Hayes in 1878), a tennis court (President Theodore Roosevelt in 1902), a performing arts venue (President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1965), Willie Nelson’s performance (President Jimmy Carter in 1980), the Beach Boys’ South Lawn Beach Party (President Ronald Reagan in 1983), youth T-ball games (President George H.W. Bush in 2001), and a collaborative arts festival (President Barack Obama in 2016).
The good news is that a recent Reuters poll revealed that only 16% of Americans—including one-third of Republicans—said that holding UFC events on the White House lawn was appropriate.
Determined to make his mark, Trump did not care that it would be an ugly blemish on White House history—or another reflection of how far the nation has descended into Trump’s abyss.
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'A Foundation of Lies': Trump Planned to Spend $300 Million in Taxpayer Dollars on Ballroom While Claiming It Was Privately Funded
"They cut your healthcare while spending taxpayer dollars on a golden ballroom for Donald Trump," said Rep. Greg Casar. "And they lied about it."
Jun 16, 2026
Internal documents show that President Donald Trump was lying when he said taxpayers would not be footing the bill for his massive White House ballroom.
Reiterating what he'd already said countless times, the president claimed in March that the project was "taxpayer-free" and entirely funded by private donors, who'd spend $400 million to build it in the now-demolished East Wing of the White House.
But at the time he made these comments, he knew that was untrue.
The Washington Post reported on Tuesday that a detailed project summary made three weeks earlier showed the total construction cost at $600 million, with more than half of the funds coming from taxpayers.
Here is a montage of Trump promising his ballroom won't cost taxpayers any money, despite new reports that taxpayers will be paying for half of the $600M project https://t.co/51scEAuOfX pic.twitter.com/EqUPUUSxqX
— Headquarters (@HQNewsNow) June 16, 2026
The Post continued:
By the time Trump made his comments in March, the federal government had already approved more than a dozen payments to the contractor overseeing the work, Clark Construction, totaling tens of millions of dollars in public funds, according to a log of the contractor’s invoices obtained by The Post...
Multiple project summaries provided to the White House by Clark Construction show that internal cost estimates have been significantly higher than administration officials have acknowledged in public comments or court filings. They also show that the work was projected to rely heavily on taxpayer dollars from the moment it was announced.
According to the March 5 estimate reviewed by the Post, $293 million worth of funding is coming from donors—many of whom have received new or extended federal contracts over the past six months.
The rest of the money comes from taxpayer-funded sources: $155 million would come from the Secret Service, $149 million from the White House Military Office, and $3 million from the Executive Residence.
In May, Republicans in Congress proposed an additional $1 billion from taxpayers to fund “security adjustments and upgrades" for which Trump has said would be comprised of a subterranean six-story bunker complete with everything from bomb shelters to military medical facilities and a base to launch "unlimited numbers of drones."
Although that funding was ultimately excluded from the bill, taxpayer money is still being used through agency accounts, the Post's reporting shows.
The claim that the ballroom would not use taxpayer dollars has been repeated by other Republicans in Congress, including Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.), who described it in May as "totally privately funded."
Asked by a reporter on Tuesday about the Post's revelation, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) contradicted this assurance, acknowledging that there "is certainly some expectation that there would be dollars allocated that would go above and beyond the private money that's been raised."
White House spokesperson Davis Ingle told the Post that "President Trump and generous American patriots are funding the ballroom to the tune of approximately $400 million, which will be a secure and appropriate venue for presidents for generations to come." He did not address questions about the taxpayer funding or the cost of the project.
The news has put many Republicans, particularly those who've voted to cut taxpayer-funded social welfare programs in the name of fiscal prudence, in an uncomfortable position.
A new investigation in the Washington Post examines an internal estimate in March evaluating the cost of President Trump’s White House ballroom and reveals that the project’s internal cost estimate is $600 million, half of which will be covered by taxpayers. Trump had previously… https://t.co/HbMxmQHOty pic.twitter.com/e5RoMsJWlN
— Drop Site (@DropSiteNews) June 16, 2026
Asked about the revelations by a reporter from Drop Site News, Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) scoffed, "You believe everything in the Washington Post." Stating he had not seen the report, he said, "I'm sure they have anonymous sources."
Notably, the White House itself did not dispute the Post's story, nor did the story rely on anonymous sources.
Others fell back on the White House's security justification. Asked if he supported using taxpayer dollars for the project, Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) responded, "I support protecting the president," and said he supports funding for "more Secret Service agents, something like that." The spending outlined in the Post's story does not include funding for more agents.
Public Citizen democracy advocate Jon Golinger called for an immediate investigation by Congress following revelations that taxpayer money was being spent.
"These secret records reveal that Trump’s ballroom is being built on a foundation of lies, fraud, and corruption," he said. "We are also calling for an investigation to uncover the names and actions of every Trump White House and administration official who was involved in this plot to circumvent congressional approval and spent unauthorized taxpayer dollars on Trump’s ballroom."
Golinger said the unauthorized use of taxpayer money could violate the Antideficiency Act, which "makes executive officials who engage in unlawful taxpayer spending schemes personally, and potentially criminally, liable for their actions."
Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas), the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said the unauthorized use of taxpayer funds was "a huge scandal."
"They cut your healthcare while spending taxpayer dollars on a golden ballroom for Donald Trump," he said, "And they lied about it.
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'I Don't F*ck With Trump': Artists Listed for US 250th Anniversary Celebration Drop Out
"The artists were never told about any political involvement with the event," claimed rapper Young MC.
May 28, 2026
Artists slated to perform at the government-sponsored 250th-anniversary celebration of the nation next month are recoiling in horror and pulling out left and right upon learning of President Donald Trump's involvement.
The lineup scheduled to perform at the "Great American State Fair"—which included the likes of Milli Vanilli, Vanilla Ice, and Poison vocalist Bret Michaels—was already getting dragged for what the Daily Beast described as a "lack of A-list musical talent" willing to perform for the president.
But some on the setlist apparently only agreed to participate because they were unaware of the president's heavy involvement in planning the festivities, which will include—among other things—a UFC fight on his birthday, a teenage athletic competition that many compare to the Hunger Games, and an American history exhibit created by PragerU hosted by an artificial intelligence-powered George Washington.
After just over a day, three acts—a full third of those announced—have already pulled out of the festival.
“I have informed my agents that I will not be performing at the Freedom 250 event,” said the hip-hop artist Young MC in a social media post on Wednesday, mere hours after the list of performers was published.
The rapper, who is most renowned for the 1989 classic "Bust a Move," said "the artists were never told about any political involvement with the event. And despite the claims by the organizers that the event is non-partisan, Spin magazine describes it as ‘Trump-backed.’ I hope to perform in DC in the near future at an event that is not so politically charged.”
Morris Day and the Time, most known for their work with Prince, denied ever having been part of the festivities.
“Contrary to rumor, Morris Day & the Time will not be performing at the ‘Great American State Fair,’" they said. "It's a no for me."
"Gonna Make You Sweat" singer Freedom Williams of C+C Music Factory said he was surprised to start receiving phone calls asking why he was performing for Trump.
He said his agent "didn't say nothing about Trump" when he booked the performance months before. "So I told my agent, yeah, no, I ain’t good to do that… I don’t fuck with Trump. I don’t give a fuck about Trump. I know the type of fucking anarchy he creates."
As its music festival falls apart, Freedom 250 has emphasized that it is technically an independent 501(c)3 and that the White House itself is not directly putting on the celebration.
However, the festivities are being coordinated by a White House Task Force created by Trump, and it has been relentlessly promoted on official White House social media channels.
Much of Freedom 250's programming is also overtly MAGA-coded, from its wellness-focused "Make America Healthy Again Monday" to its numerous Christian prayer events.
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