{"id":2501593,"date":"2025-10-21T18:02:02","date_gmt":"2025-10-21T22:02:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/thom-tillis-criticizes-bad-timing-of-trumps-ballroom-renovations\/"},"modified":"2025-10-21T18:02:58","modified_gmt":"2025-10-21T22:02:58","slug":"thom-tillis-criticizes-bad-timing-of-trumps-ballroom-renovations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/thom-tillis-criticizes-bad-timing-of-trumps-ballroom-renovations\/","title":{"rendered":"Thom Tillis criticizes &#8216;bad&#8217; timing of Trump\u2019s ballroom renovations"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fthom-tillis-criticizes-bad-timing-of-trumps-ballroom-renovations%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2501593&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Senator thom Tillis (R-NC) criticized President Donald Trump&#8217;s decision to start renovations on a new White House ballroom amid a government shutdown, saying &#8220;the timing is bad&#8221; as attention should be focused on more pressing issues. The $250 million East Wing project began demolition while <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >federal workers faced missed paychecks<\/a> three weeks into the shutdown. Trump, who hosted Senate Republicans for a lunch at the White House, acknowledged the construction noise and said it reminded him of his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-pleads-not-guilty-to-34-criminal-charges-in-new-york\/\" title=\"Trump Pleads Not Guilty to 34 Criminal Charges in New York\">real estate career<\/a>. The ballroom will be funded through private donations and some of Trump&#8217;s own money, with no <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/house-gop-twists-screws-on-state-dept-in-censorship-probe\/\" title=\"House GOP intensifies State Dept censorship investigation\">taxpayer funds involved<\/a>. Other Republican senators acknowledged the renovation but did not voice criticism, with some praising Trump&#8217;s efforts to improve the White House&#8217;s appearance.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">GOP senator criticizes Trump&rsquo;s shutdown ballroom renovations: &lsquo;Timing is bad&rsquo;<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2378943\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>Sen. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/thom-tillis\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Thom Tillis<\/a> (R-NC) criticized President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Donald Trump&rsquo;s<\/a> plans for a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3857506\/white-house-east-wing-ballroom-construction\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">new White House ballroom<\/a> on Tuesday, telling reporters that the &ldquo;timing is bad&rdquo; for him to begin tearing down part of the East Wing to make space for the project.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;re in the middle of a shutdown. Got a couple of other things going on that we should probably focus on ahead of a building project,&rdquo; Tillis said as he entered the Senate chamber for an afternoon vote.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/senate-2\/3858301\/fetterman-filibuster-vote-government-shutdown\/\">Fetterman says he&rsquo;d vote to kill filibuster to end shutdown impasse<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/3857509\/thune-trial-balloon-shutdown-strategy-federal-worker-pay\/\">Thune pivots to federal worker pay as latest shutdown trial balloon<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/3857844\/trump-conditions-venezuela-maduro-lindsey-graham\/\">Trump to set conditions on Venezuela&#8217;s Maduro to &#8216;take him down,&#8217; Graham says<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3854076\/island-fundraisers-rooftop-soirees-babydog-birthday-bonanza-washington-shrugs-shutdown-optics\/\"><strong>ISLAND FUNDRAISERS, ROOFTOP SOIREES, AND A BABYDOG BIRTHDAY BONANZA: WASHINGTON SHRUGS AT SHUTDOWN OPTICS<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>His comment comes shortly after Trump hosted Senate Republicans at the White House for a &ldquo;thank you&rdquo; lunch in the Rose Garden, where the president delivered a speech on the legislative victories of his first nine months back in office.<\/p>\n<p>At one point, Trump addressed the noise of construction that could be heard in the background as demolition crews took apart the East Wing&rsquo;s facade for what will be a 90,000-square-foot project with an estimated price tag of $250 million.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;You hear that sound? Oh, that&rsquo;s music to my ears. I love that sound,&rdquo; Trump said in the Rose Garden, telling senators the noise reminds him of his career in real estate.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;When I hear that sound, it reminds me of money,&rdquo; he added. &ldquo;In this case, it reminds me of lack of money because I&rsquo;m paying for it.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The White House says no taxpayer dollars will be used to build the ballroom. Trump will instead raise funds from Lockheed Martin, Google, and <a href=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/homenews\/administration\/5565273-trump-white-house-ballroom-funding-plans\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">other private donors<\/a>, plus an undisclosed portion of his own wealth.<\/p>\n<p>Tillis, who has an on-and-off-again relationship with Trump, did not attend the White House lunch on Tuesday, telling reporters he had just returned to Washington from a funeral. Republicans who went declined to criticize the shutdown optics.<\/p>\n<p>The demolition, which began on Monday, is taking place as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/house-rejects-funding-bill-government-shutdown-imminent\/\" title=\"... imminent as House rejects funding bill.\">federal workers begin<\/a> to miss paychecks three weeks into the government shutdown.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Construction is not in my job description,&rdquo; Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) told <em>HuffPost<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), who delivered brief remarks at the lunch, made a point to praise the extent to which Trump has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3499661\/trump-white-house-renovations-echoes-real-estate-experience\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">given the White House a makeover<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3858191\/john-thune-house-recess-government-shutdown\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>THUNE SIDESTEPS MIKE JOHNSON RECESS CRITICISM: &lsquo;TRY NOT TO GIVE THE HOUSE ADVICE&rsquo;<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;You have beautiful homes, and thank you for everything you&rsquo;re doing to make this such a beautiful place,&rdquo; Thune said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We did see the big excavator or whatever going at it, and you can hear the jackhammers,&rdquo; Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) said of the construction. &ldquo;So, it&rsquo;s happening.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>GOP senator says Trump&#8217;s ballroom renovation timing is poor<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2651,"featured_media":2501594,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AP25294681908907-e1761083227884.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[65639,41388,3634],"class_list":["post-2501593","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-ballroom-renovations","tag-thom-tillis","tag-trump"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AP25294681908907-e1761083227884.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2501593","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2651"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2501593"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2501593\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2501597,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2501593\/revisions\/2501597"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2501594"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2501593"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2501593"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2501593"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}