Republicans voice support for Trump ballroom project after shooting

Several high-profile Republicans on Monday voiced support for President Donald Trump's proposed White House ballroom, two days after the shooting at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner. House Speaker Mike Johnson described the hall as providing a "secure environment" for large events. For his part, Rep. Mike Lawler called its construction "imperative," while Sen. Tim Sheehy called it "common sense."

Johnson argued that holding events like the Correspondents' Dinner inside the White House complex would significantly improve security. "The ballroom will be a solution to this, because it will be in the most secure complex in the world. It won't have hotel rooms above it, and it will have, for example, 7-inch-thick glass in the windows. So it will be a very secure environment to hold events like this. We need a place like this, we've needed it, and the president keeps pointing it out," Johnson said during an interview on Fox News.

Legal hurdles

The ballroom project - long pushed by Trump - has faced different legal hurdles, to the point that construction has been virtually halted since a federal judge ruled that the president did not have the unilateral authority to move forward without congressional approval. In response, Republican lawmakers are working to revive the proposal through legislation, with Rep. Lauren Boebert assuring that she is preparing a bill to ensure the work moves forward, and Rep. Randy Fine announcing plans to introduce the "Build the Ballroom Act."

Rep. Marlin Stutzman pointed to the shooting as proof of the need for the facility. "It is for the president and for the safety of the guests. If anything, you'd have to make it a little bigger to be able to hold events like that there."

Trump also reiterated his support for the project after the attack by commenting, "I didn't want to say this, but this is the reason we have to have all the features of what we're planning at the White House. It's a bigger room and much more secure. It's drone-proof, it's got bulletproof glass. We need the ballroom." He later added on Truth Social that the structure "can't be built fast enough."