President Donald Trump and his Republican allies are seizing on the shooting at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner to press their case for a new ballroom on White House grounds, arguing the attack proves the need for a more secure venue for large events.
Speaking to reporters shortly after the incident on Saturday, Trump said the country needs security levels that are unprecedented. On Sunday, GOP lawmakers announced they were drafting legislation to fast-track the ballroom's construction, while the Department of Justice urged the National Trust for Historic Preservation to drop its lawsuit against the project, citing the shooting as a reason.
The preservation group's lawyer responded on Monday, stating the legal challenge would continue.
Critics question the logic, noting the WHCA dinner is a private event with a guest list and venue controlled by the association, not the White House. Meghan Hays, a Democratic strategist and former aide to President Joe Biden, said there is a fundamental misunderstanding: the dinner is not a White House event.
Supporters of the ballroom counter that no other venue in Washington—especially after the apparent security failure at the Washington Hilton—can host thousands while providing the highest level of protection. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche argued at a press conference Monday that the shooting is the best example of why the ballroom is necessary. He added that the city is stuck holding events in hotels with rooms above them, which are inherently vulnerable.
The suspect, Cole Thomas Allen, gained access to the Hilton by booking a hotel room the night before, bypassing the need for an invitation. Victoria Coates, a former deputy national security adviser to Trump, said the world has changed and what worked a decade ago no longer suffices. She pointed to the Ronald Reagan Building as a model for a facility that can be fully locked down, unlike a hotel with guests and deliveries. Florida Lt. Gov. Jay Collins, a former Green Beret, echoed that a ballroom on White House property would be a hardened security site where ingress and egress can be tightly controlled.
Opponents argue it is essential to keep press events separate from federal property, as the dinner is not taxpayer-funded. Hays stressed that press independence requires distance from government, and the event's tradition of mutual ribbing underscores that.
Several Republicans are backing legislation to expedite the ballroom, including Reps. Randy Fine and Lauren Boebert, as well as Sens. Lindsey Graham, Katie Britt, and Eric Schmitt. At least one Democrat, Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, has broken with his party to support the project, posting on X that the venue was not built for an event with the line of succession and urging colleagues to drop what he called Trump derangement syndrome and build the ballroom.
The push comes as House Republicans work to pass a budget and reopen the Department of Homeland Security, which Secretary Markwayne Mullin warned will run out of funds for employee pay by early May. House Republicans are blocking a Senate-passed funding bill due to demands for a comprehensive package that covers all of DHS, including ICE and Border Patrol. Rep. Brittany Pettersen criticized the ballroom as a vanity project, saying the priority should be funding DHS and the Secret Service, not wasting millions.
