Treasury Department employees have been warned not to take and share pictures of the White House demolition from a neighboring building as the ripping up of the East Wing’s facade for President Donald Trump’s new ballroom was described as “grotesque” and “heart breaking” by critics.
“As construction proceeds on the White House grounds, employees should refrain from taking and sharing photographs of the grounds, to include the East Wing, without prior approval from the Office of Public Affairs,” an email sent Tuesday by Treasury officials, and viewed by The Wall Street Journal, read.
A Treasury department spokesperson told the WSJ that sharing photos could “potentially reveal sensitive items, including security features or confidential structural details.”
Images of heavy machinery pulling down walls were shared widely online Monday as crews got to work on Trump’s $250 million ballroom.
The Independent has contacted the White House and Treasury Department for comment.
Trump said Monday his new ballroom would be “a lot of fun” as he talked about the project during an event with college baseball championship teams.
“You know, we’re building right behind us. We’re building a ballroom. They’ve wanted a ballroom for 150 years, and I’m giving that honor to this wonderful place,” he said.
The president appeared to suggest that the new ballroom, which will be funded by private donations, would be connected to the main White House residence through what he described as a “knockout panel” in the East Room.
The president’s construction projects, including the demolition for the ballroom and the paving over of the White House Rose Garden, have caused outrage among Democrats and liberal commentators.
Posting an image of the demolition on its official X account, The Democratic Party wrote: “Trump is tearing down the East Wing of the White House to build a $250 million golden ballroom for himself and his donors.”
“Ripping apart the White House just like he’s ripping apart the Constitution,” California Governor Gavin Newsom, a frequent Trump troller, posted.
Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren pointed to the timing of the destruction which coincides with the ongoing government shutdown. Warren wrote on X: “Oh you’re trying to say the cost of living is skyrocketing?… Donald Trump can’t hear you over the sound of bulldozers demolishing a wing of the White House to build a new grand ballroom.”
CNN Political commentator Karen Finney described the project as “fairly grotesque.”
“This breaks my heart and it infuriates me. Hundreds of millions of dollars to build a new ballroom. Good god,” wrote Maria Shriver, niece of former President John F Kennedy.
Legal writer Marcy Wheeler, compared the destruction of the East Wing facade to the damage done by British troops under command of Major General Robert Ross, who ordered the burning of both the White House residence and the Capitol during the War of 1812.
“First Trump’s mob attacked the Capitol for the first time since 1812. And now Trump is doing more damage to the White House than the British did in 1814,” she said.
The East Wing, built in 1902 and given a second floor under President Franklin Roosevelt in 1942, has traditionally housed the Office of the First Lady and other parts of the White House, including the White House Travel Office and the White House Military Office.
Trump’s new ballroom is expected to be at least 90,000 square feet and have space for at least 650 seats. The East Room, currently used for large White House events, currently has capacity for 200 seats.
“For more than 150 years, every President has dreamt about having a Ballroom at the White House to accommodate people for grand parties, State Visits, etc. I am honored to be the first President to finally get this much-needed project underway,” Trump wrote on Truth Social Monday night.
