Trump's building projects: 'Litigate, investigate and legislate' - USA Today

One day after the blistering defeat suffered by Republicans in the midterms, President Donald Trump as builder-in-chief was back.

He provided a tour of the under-construction White House ballroom to reporters, bookending the Nov. 3 elections with appearances talking about chandeliers, Carrara marble and the thickness of steel.

Renovation projects – which he calls relaxing and which Democrats have called “vanity projects” – have been at the front and center of Trump's presidency. He has sought to physically transform the nation's capital and the White House with projects that include building a 20,000 square-foot ballroom, rehabilitating Lafayette Square and building a 250-foot Triumphal Arch.

He delivered his closing pitch to voters a day before the midterms while standing before the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, the site of one of his most controversial construction projects.

Trump has consistently bypassed or avoided seeking congressional approval for the projects, sparking legal battles over the limits of executive power.

But with Democrats wresting control of Congress from Republicans, Trump's attempts to leave his mark on Washington could face an uncertain future.

On Nov. 5, Trump sought to make some of the changes he's made to the Oval Office and the Cabinet Room in the White House permanent, signing a historic proclamation to make them "a landmark for the ages."

"We're making it a national monument," he said. "And it will not be allowed to be touched by anybody, ripped down by stupid people in order to build something in a slightly different shape.”

He said someone could say in the future: "Let's not have an oval anymore, let’s make it square.”

"We like the Oval Office. It is a symbol of the White House itself. It is a symbol of our country and the greatness of our country," he said.

Trump has paved over the Rose Garden and gilded the Oval Office with gold accents, including gold-colored appliqués on the fireplace and gilded mirrors. Ornate Rococo-style 18th and 19th century dessert stands and flower vases from London and France sit on the mantle. He installed a grandfather clock in the Cabinet Room that was brought in from the State Department.

With Congress changing hands, many of his biggest projects could come under scrutiny.

“Congress has to litigate, investigate, and legislate,” said Jon Gollinger of the Public Citizen, a nonprofit consumer advocacy organization that has been opposing many of the projects. “The purse strings that Congress holds under the Constitution are probably the most powerful weapon, and so I imagine there'll be a lot of activity on all these projects to ensure they do everything they can to cut off illegal diversion of taxpayer money from continuing."

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-MA, told USA TODAY that Congress should be focused on lowering costs for families, not "building monuments to Trump’s ego."

“Congress should put a stop to this, investigate any corrupt donations, and send the money back to the American people," she said.

White House spokesman Davis Ingle defended the president's projects.

"Thanks to the Builder-in-Chief, no other president has done more to beautify our Nation’s interior than President Trump," Ingle said in a statement. "From restoring our treasured landmarks after suffering years of abuse and vandalism, to cleaning our parks and the Reflecting Pool and equipping the White House with a much needed Helipad and the finest Ballroom anywhere in the world, President Trump’s bold vision is ensuring the People’s House and our Nation’s Capital will be properly glorified and remain in excellent condition for generations to come.”

On Nov. 5, the National Capital Planning Commission, a federal commission stacked with Trump loyalists, is expected to vote to approve Trump’s plan to build a 250-foot arch in Washington, topped with a 60-foot-tall gilded, winged Lady Liberty figure.

A lawsuit filed by Vietnam War veterans and an architectural historian to block construction of the arch is making its way through the courts. They contend that the arch, proposed at Memorial Circle on Columbus Island, would obstruct the view between Arlington National Cemetery and the Lincoln Memorial, "a view carefully designed to symbolize the unification of the country after the Civil War and the strength of a united nation.”

In May, the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, whose members were appointed by Trump, voted to approve the design for the "Triumphal Arch" at Memorial Circle near Arlington National Cemetery.

On Nov. 5, hours before NCPC voted for the project, Democratic Virginia Rep. Don Beyer, who represents the commonwealth’s 8th district, which includes Arlington County, said he had never seen such widespread opposition to a project from his community.

“Nobody in the administration can defend this or explain it, but we know why he's trying to rush it through,” he said. “It’s because he knows that the Congress we just elected two days ago will reassert its constitutional authority and stop him pushing forward with this disgrace.”

A hearing held by NCPC in June received almost 1,700 written comments, 99% of which were negative.

“This preposterous arch needs Congressional approval and funding prior to any approvals by this Commission! This is another example of authoritarianism by this corrupt administration!” wrote Jeff Eorio.

Congress has not authorized construction of a memorial arch on the federal land managed by the National Park Service, which the lawsuit contends is required by statute before the government can move forward with construction.

Trump has dismissed the idea, saying the land was "owned" by the Department of the Interior.

When the White House released plans for the ballroom on July 31, 2025, Trump told reporters that the 90,000-square-foot addition would be “built over on the east side and it will be beautiful.”

“It'll have views of the Washington Monument. It won't interfere with the current building,” he said. “It'll be near it but not touching it and pay total respect to the existing building, which I'm the biggest fan of.”

Less than three months later, bulldozers had removed the entire East Wing of the White House. The construction was no longer "near" the part of the building that historically housed the first lady’s offices, as Trump had initially described the project.

A second-generation real estate businessman, Trump, well versed in the “brutal” process of getting zoning approvals, said he was told by “two geniuses” that he did not need any approvals.

The National Trust for Preservation sued the administration, saying the project did not seek the necessary approvals. The group wrote that the 90,000 square feet of new construction “will overwhelm the White House itself,” which is 55,000 square feet, and that the addition “may also permanently disrupt the carefully balanced classical design of the White House with its two smaller, and lower, East and West Wings."

After going through lower courts, the case finally ended up before the Supreme Court, which in a 5-4 ruling allowed the Trump administration to continue building the $400 million ballroom and underground military installation.

The majority found that the plaintiffs – the National Trust for Historic Preservation and architectural historian Alison Hoagland – lacked legal standing to sue, ruling that aesthetic objections and views of the construction from outside the fence did not amount to a concrete injury.

Bollinger said that Congress itself would have standing, however. And given that the Supreme Court did not decide on the merits of the case, the door was left open to future challenges.

“I think the Supreme Court issued a gold engraved invitation to Congress to refile the same ballroom lawsuit basically on day one next year,” he said. “And we certainly hope that they do take them up on that.”

Given that the East Wing is razed and construction continues apace, with a completion date of summer 2028, what purpose would that serve, Bollinger was asked.

“The first point is to stop it. This president says that he is the code and he is the law,” Bollinger said. “So if the Supreme Court would affirm that any president, Democratic or Republican or other, would have to follow the law like anybody else, it would set a precedent.”

At worst, Bollinger said they could improve the building and make it useful for “more than lobster and candlelight dinners for billionaires, which is what Trump wants to use it for.”

A lawsuit could change the scale of the building and improve financial transparency, he said.

Just shy of three weeks after being sworn-in as president for the second time, Trump announced on social media that he had found an “amazing” chairman to take the Kennedy Center reins: himself.

More than a year of legal wrangling over the fate of the institution followed, until a Trump-aligned board in August voted to add his name to the building and plaza with an inscription such as "restored and renovated by President Donald J. Trump." Congress has approved $257 million for the project.

A federal judge blocked the board's efforts to add Trump's name to the structure or shut it down for a two-year closure, ruling that memorials or name alterations require congressional approval. The judge issued a temporary restraining order requiring the center to continue operating.

A federal judge also ordered the Kennedy Center to provide 30 days' written notice to the court and plaintiffs before making any major physical changes to the main building – including any potential demolition.

The Trump-backed board voted to close most of the facility in September, citing severe financial trouble, plummeting ticket sales, and infrastructure hazards – including a ceiling collapse.

Warren recently shared the costs associated with Trump’s various projects.

“Trump-Backed DC Vanity Projects: White House and Lafayette Park Renovations: $927M+; DC 250 makeover: $102M; National Garden of American Heroes: $40M; Trump's arch: $15M; Gilded statues: $5.1M; Total: $1.089B. Not hard to see what Trump really values.”

Warren told USA TODAY that the message from the voters was clear.

"American people have just overwhelmingly rejected Trump’s waste and abuse," she said.

Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy is a White House correspondent for USA TODAY. You can follow her on X @SwapnaVenugopal.