this post was submitted on 19 Dec 2025
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Trump can't focus long enough, even on his $400 million passion project

In October, Donald Trump traumatized all true patriots by tearing down the East Wing of the White House. The move, he claims, will clear the way for a ballroom for holding large events that are typically held in tents on the South Lawn. A debate immediately arose online over whether or not the next Democratic president should tear down the ballroom or keep it, albeit with the necessary extensive renovations to remove all the tackiness Trump brings to any project.

Two months later, it increasingly seems that such discussion was a wasted effort, as the chance this ballroom will actually be built is rapidly disappearing. Perhaps it could have if Trump had delegated the management of the project to someone competent, but that’s not what he did. Instead, the famously lazy and disorganized president decided to blow off his actual governance duties in favor of micromanaging a construction project he is incapable of handling. Finishing the ballroom in the next three years would be difficult for anyone, but it’s quickly becoming clear it will be nearly impossible for the famed real estate tycoon to pull it off.

The whole thing is a too-perfect symbol of Trump’s second administration: They are very good at breaking things, but they don’t know how to create anything of value.

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[–] ABetterTomorrow@sh.itjust.works 19 points 1 hour ago

Trump has a track record of not paying people. Even court records to prove it. Blows my mind the demo team agreed to do this and now they’re not getting paid. No money, no worky

[–] Archangel1313@lemmy.ca 4 points 47 minutes ago (1 children)
[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 1 points 38 minutes ago

Good luck getting hardware in this market

[–] FreshParsnip@lemmy.ca 6 points 1 hour ago

So he vandalized the Whitehouse for nothing?

[–] Bonifratz@piefed.zip 67 points 4 hours ago (2 children)

The fact that Trump just randomly tore down part of the White House still makes me laugh.

[–] boonhet@sopuli.xyz 6 points 1 hour ago

True patriot.

[–] SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca 17 points 3 hours ago

Wait until you see the shit stains on the constitution.

[–] Treczoks@lemmy.world 17 points 3 hours ago

Not unexpected. He handed all kinds of government jobs to the terminally incompetent.

[–] dhork@lemmy.world 120 points 5 hours ago (8 children)

I bet they can't get any contractor to work on that, because the Administration has already stiffed the demolition crew and nobody wants to touch a job they will never get paid for.

[–] bagsy@lemmy.world 12 points 1 hour ago

That asshole hasnt paid any bills in decades, i cant believe anyone is still dumb enough to accept a job for this conman.

[–] captainlezbian@lemmy.world 9 points 2 hours ago (1 children)

Also, you try finding a construction crew on the east coast he hasn't personally stiffed already

[–] jaybone@lemmy.zip 1 points 17 minutes ago (1 children)

Maybe he can order the army corps of engineers to do it.

[–] captainlezbian@lemmy.world 2 points 15 minutes ago

Instructions unclear they installed a dam

[–] Stern@lemmy.world 108 points 5 hours ago (3 children)

You need to remember just how stupid some of his base is. There are pickme's out there who will 100% jump at the chance and think surely Trump won't stiff them.

[–] jonne 70 points 5 hours ago* (last edited 5 hours ago) (3 children)

I'm actually amazed how he keeps finding new suckers after decades of doing it in the private sector and almost 10 years of doing it as President. The only ones that really came out ahead are the criminals that bought their pardons. Everyone else gets screwed one way or another.

[–] ArmchairAce1944@discuss.online 4 points 1 hour ago (1 children)

Same here. Even back in 2010 and 2011 when I first started to look him up I was surprised that anyone could have trusted him or taken him seriously once the 90s rolled around. He should have been remembered as that conman from the 80s who is barely hanging onto life financially today.

[–] jaybone@lemmy.zip 1 points 14 minutes ago

He was always that shadey “businessman”, but that stupid reality show really put him back in the spotlight.

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 1 points 35 minutes ago

A lot of the work is shoddy. The businesses doing the work have some kind of quid pro quo. Financing is involved, so the real bag holders will be lenders pitched a job they can never collect on.

There's a lot of different ways to pass the bill around in the modern economy, such that landing a $300M job on-paper can be leveraged to cheat and swindle people down the line.

[–] prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone 3 points 1 hour ago (1 children)

10 years doing it as President?

[–] DagwoodIII@piefed.social 4 points 1 hour ago (1 children)

He announced his intentions in 2015, so it's a cromulent statement.

[–] Sculptor9157@sh.itjust.works 4 points 1 hour ago

Not to mention his whining overshadowed anything Biden had going on administratively. This, it's been about about that idiot for a decade...and is still ongoing.

[–] tempest@lemmy.ca 11 points 4 hours ago (2 children)

On a personal level sure, but this isn't a job for a random one man operation.

At the top level you need a business and as much as business leaders love Trump (who doesn't love a useful idiot) they would never risk their bottom line for it.

All that and the fact that you would likely need a whole bunch of credentials to be building parts of the white house, or at least you likely used to.

[–] tempest@lemmy.ca 5 points 1 hour ago

Actually on second thought I'm an idiot.

If he actually builds that stupid ballroom he would have to pay for it. Much easier to just take the donations and leave a hole in the ground.

How could I not see such an obvious grift.

[–] somethingsnappy@lemmy.world 3 points 2 hours ago

He'll just hire a Russian firm. No security issues there.

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[–] Tolookah@discuss.tchncs.de 29 points 5 hours ago (2 children)

I bet they can't get any contractor to work on that, because the Administration has already stiffed the demolition crew

I wanted this to be true... https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/trump-east-wing-demolition-congress/?collection=471833 Unfortunately it's not

[–] cenzorrll@piefed.ca 2 points 2 hours ago

That doesn't mean he hasn't stiffed them, just that particular story about congress blocking funds is fake.

[–] half_built_pyramids@lemmy.world 18 points 5 hours ago (1 children)

Wow, when did snopes become an absolutely adfucked shithole. Besides, as far as I can tell that article is focused on Congress stopping the payments being false, not whether or not they've actually been paid, which wasn't clear to me.

[–] jonne 15 points 5 hours ago (8 children)

I wonder what a demolition crew does if you don't pay them. Other tradies will typically just rip out their work, but it's not like a demo crew can easily rebuild something they tore down.

[–] floofloof@lemmy.ca 33 points 5 hours ago* (last edited 5 hours ago) (1 children)

Maybe that's Trump's big plan: don't pay the demolition crew, and hope that they build a massive ballroom in protest.

[–] jonne 14 points 5 hours ago
[–] SARGE@startrek.website 2 points 2 hours ago

I'm a big fan of "you paid us to remove your shit, you didn't pay us, here's your shit/equivalent of your shit back"

[–] ryathal@sh.itjust.works 8 points 4 hours ago

A demo crew could keep working by mistake.

[–] Zephorah@discuss.online 9 points 5 hours ago

Most contractors put a lien on your house.

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[–] cAUzapNEAGLb@lemmy.world 14 points 4 hours ago (1 children)

I think there's a pretty good argument laid out in this video that the ballroom is a literal cover for a bunkered database

https://youtu.be/VbJ4ilDvGyc

[–] altasshet@lemmy.ca 3 points 13 minutes ago

Can't watch the video now, but why build it next to the white house instead of literally anywhere else?

[–] SinningStromgald@lemmy.world 35 points 5 hours ago

Man who failed at casinos unable to build ballroom. Who could have forseen this!?!?!

[–] snooggums@piefed.world 25 points 5 hours ago (1 children)

Trump can’t focus long enough, even on his $400 million passion project

Didn't it start out under $100 million?

[–] Sumocat@lemmy.world 38 points 5 hours ago (5 children)

It started at $200M and as “not affecting the existing structure” and will end as a $900M donation to the Trump presidential library, which will also not be built.

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[–] etherphon@lemmy.world 8 points 4 hours ago

They are very good at breaking things, but they don’t know how to create anything of value.

Yet they'll still come out richer than ever, what a world.

[–] NuXCOM_90Percent@lemmy.zip 9 points 4 hours ago

Was actually wondering about this the other night.

Are there any pictures of the current state of it? I kind of assume they just half tore down the east wing and then wandered off.

But, regardless: This was always a scam. Even if they build something, expect trump and his cronies to pocket the vast majority of the money that was supposed to be dedicated to it. Wouldn't be shocked if it just collapsed the first time a hurricane reached DC.

[–] apples4anna@lemmy.world 21 points 5 hours ago (1 children)
[–] givesomefucks@lemmy.world 21 points 5 hours ago

We can't have elections in the middle of a ballroom renovation!!

[–] PattyMcB@lemmy.world 12 points 5 hours ago (1 children)

Oh... now it's $400 million?

[–] MadMadBunny@lemmy.ca 18 points 5 hours ago

$400 million SO FAR!

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