Trump said that the project was “moving along on schedule” and would be unlike anything “anywhere in the World.”

President Donald Trump’s pitch for his White House ballroom project has been anchored in a repeated promise to Americans: They won’t have to pay for it. But internal contractor estimates reported by The Washington Post on Tuesday show taxpayers were projected to cover half of a price tag that had swelled to $600 million by March.

President Trump's construction projects include restoring the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, building a 90,000-square-foot White House ballroom and a 250-foot triumphal arch.

Trump’s planned White House ballroom is presented as a glamorous addition, but the transcript frames it as a dark symbol of unchecked executive power. The project would cost $250 million, span 90,000 square feet,

People suffering during the shutdown “are never going to be invited” to the ball room. So why is that Trump’s focus?