Donald Trump Admitted His Ego Is The Reason For The White House Ballroom

Donald Trump has practically begged people for attention and adulation, but as beloved as he feels he should be, he might understand that isn't actually the reality. If he did feel that he was truly deserving of love and respect for his work as president, Trump might not have torn down the East Wing of the White House to make way for his ballroom. In his speech at AmericaFest, the big Turning Point USA annual event, Fox News host Jesse Watters told what we assume he thought was a fun story about Trump showing him the plans for the controversial new event space. Watters apparently seemed surprised by the size; "I said, 'Mr President, the ballroom is like four times the size of the White House!'" And then Watters gave Trump's game away. "'Jesse, it's a monument.' [Trump said.] 'I'm building a monument to myself because no one else will” (via YouTube).

So instead of working to be a leader that Americans would want to honor with a monument, Trump is making his own. It's not particularly surprising that Trump would want something to be all about him, given the size of his ego. One person wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter), "Trump has got to be the most insecure and egotistical billionaire in the world, feeling the need to build monuments to himself and affix his name to buildings." And one critic pointed out: "The White House is the people's house. Trump has no authority or right to destroy it for his own aggrandizement."

We have to admit though, that potential self-awareness from Trump in Watters's story was a bit unexpected. As one person on X said, "Well, at least he knows no one else is willing to build a monument to him."

Lots of social media responses centered around the idea that the next president would be tearing down Donald Trump's ballroom. One person posted, "If this indeed is the true purpose of the ballroom, to serve as a monument to himself, then it must, must, be torn down and destroyed when he is removed from office."

The public backlash against the ballroom isn't the only challenge that Trump is facing. In December, Trump had to bring in a new architect for the multi-million dollar project; some say that it was because McCrery Architects, the original architecture firm, wasn't large enough to take on the new building on the timeline that Trump wanted. Though there are also reports that Trump's desire for a larger, grander ballroom didn't mesh with what McCrery felt would work in the space. The costs are also rising, with Trump saying it could cost $400 million after initially saying it would be $200 million; he'd also claimed at one point that the new ballroom wouldn't impact the current building, and the East Wing is now gone.

Trump's controversial White House addition of a ballroom brandishing his name showed that Barack Obama was right about him all along. Just like he's done with hotels around the world, Trump has a penchant for putting his name on things. And this revelation about why he's building a ballroom at the White House comes right after Trump added his name to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, which has received condemnation from many in Kennedy's family. It's like once one low has been reached with Trump, he manages to find another one.