Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) gave impassioned defenses of President Trump’s demolition of the White House’s East Wing as he prepares to construct a new grand ballroom.
“Just because President Trump has an idea, the Democrat Party’s visceral reaction is just to say no,” Scalise said in a press conference Wednesday.
Scalise said the White House has been “renovated over and over again” and “there wouldn’t be an Oval Office if there weren’t renovations by previous presidents.”
Johnson turned to the topic of the renovation after being asked about Trump seeking $230 million from the Department of Justice. Johnson said he didn’t know of the details of the requested reimbursement but that “we’re for what is just and right.”
“They attack him for everything does. It doesn’t matter what it is,” Johnson said. “This whole dust over the White House — just by way of quick review, because I’m an amateur historian — but the White House has been renovated many times.”
“We’ve had many presidents renovate and add things to the White House. Teddy Roosevelt did the whole West Wing,” Johnson said. “Truman ripped everything up to put a bowling alley, and FDR added the swimming pool. I think Barack Obama added a basketball court.”
“President Trump’s going to have the greatest improvement of the White House in the history of the building,” Johnson said, adding it will be “glorious” and that critics have “Trump derangement syndrome.”
Their comments come as images of construction crews demolishing the East Wing, which housed office space for the first lady and other staff, prompted pushback from preservationists and political opponents this week.
Scalise recalled going to state dinners with world leaders.
“You walk outside of the White House in the rain, sometimes to go to a tent, to go to a tent to host a world leader. That’s what we do today. And President Trump said that’s a disgrace, how about we do better?” Scalise said “And not only did he say we were going to build a great ballroom that we can host these events, he funded it privately. He put up some of his own money. And you would think, well, gee whiz, at least they can agree to that.”
“They say no to everything he does because they just are angry about the results of the election from last year,” Scalise said.
