President Donald Trump confirmed Sunday that the military is building a “massive complex” under the White House ballroom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The information “has come out recently because of a stupid lawsuit that was filed, but the military is building a massive complex under the ballroom, and that\u2019s under construction, and we\u2019re doing very well,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One. “So we\u2019re ahead of schedule.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
News outlets previously reported that a military bunker under the East Wing would be renovated. The East Wing was demolished in October to be replaced with a $400 million ballroom, which has sparked criticism from many Democrats and preservation advocates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trump told reporters in his Sunday remarks that “the ballroom essentially becomes a shed for what\u2019s being built under.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The president touted the ballroom plans, showing reporters pictures of the design renditions and defending the new event space as “almost a twin to the White House.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Showing reporters another picture of the ballroom design, Trump said, “I thought I’d do this now because it’s easier.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“I\u2019m so busy that I don\u2019t have time to do this, but I\u2019m fighting wars and other things,” he added. “But this is very important, because this is going to be with us for a long time, and it\u2019s going to be, I think it\u2019ll be the greatest ballroom anywhere in the world.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Last month, a federal judge rejected a lawsuit from a preservationist group that sought to stop the Trump administration from continuing construction of the 90,000 square foot ballroom. The judge said that the National Trust for Historic Preservation would have a better chance at winning the claim if the group changed the arguments in the lawsuit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The National Capital Planning Commission is set to vote on the ballroom plans in April. It has received a deluge of negative public comments about the ballroom, with critics calling it “appalling,” “shameful” and “hideous.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n