A member of the media raises his hand for a question as U.S. President Donald Trump speaks while giving a presentation of the planned White House ballroom aboard Air Force One en route to Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, U.S., March 29, 2026.
Elizabeth Frantz | reuters
President Donald Trump, top officials of his administration and many of the MAGA figures are pushing for a ballroom to be built at the White House, citing the shooting that happened just outside the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner Saturday night as the reason for his expulsion from the event at the Washington Hilton.
Trump and his supporters say building the controversial and legally challenged $400 million grand ballroom he envisions is necessary to keep him and future presidents safe from assassination attacks and other security threats.
But critics argue that a ballroom at the White House would not be accepted as a substitute for a private venue for non-government events and that the President would undoubtedly travel around the country and the world, making public appearances in many locations.
Despite that first claim, the Justice Department, in a paper on sunday A lawyer whose client was challenging the construction of the ballroom suggested that white house correspondents association Once it is built it can hold its annual dinner in the ballroom.
“When the White House Ballroom is completed, President Trump and his successors will no longer need to go beyond White House security to attend large gatherings at the Washington Hilton,” Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate wrote to Gregory Craig, who is representing the National Trust for Historical Preservation in a lawsuit seeking to stop construction of the Ballroom without a say from Congress.
Cranes look toward the White House as construction of the new ballroom extension continues, following the demolition of the East Wing, on April 11, 2026, in Washington, DC.
El Drago getty images
But critics say that Trump and his allies are absurdly repeating their arguments by citing Saturday’s incident.
They also say there is good reason to believe that he – and any future president – will never stop attending events outside the White House grounds, even if that becomes the ballroom.
They also scoff at the idea that the WHCA – an independent association of journalists covering the White House – would agree to hold its dinner at the White House, especially if a harsh critic of the media like Trump occupies the Oval Office.
WHCA president and CBS reporter Weijia Jiang did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment on that question.
But Kelly McBrideCraig Newmark Senior Vice President and President of the Center for Ethics and Leadership
When asked about the idea of the WHCA holding its dinner at the White House, he said, “There’s no way they’re doing that,” at the Poynter Institute, a nonprofit that promotes journalism ethics and development.
McBride is critical of the WHCA dinner, describing it as “a red-carpet schmoozefest with powerful sources” in an article published April 16, adding that it was “never a good idea.”
“The annual argument that partying with people who are covered up is merely a display of civility does not allay the public’s doubts about our liberties,” McBride wrote.
In an interview with CNBC, McBride said, “I can’t imagine a world where the people who think about holding this dinner and extending this invitation to the President think it’s a good idea to move it to a venue that is owned and operated by the White House.”
He said, “It solves the security problem, but it creates a bigger problem for reporters, OK? Now they’re grateful to the White House for hosting this event.”
“They lose their freedom,” McBride said. “If the original optics are bad, it is completely unacceptable to put it in a ballroom controlled by the White House.”
She said she was not surprised by how quickly Trump and his administration used the WHCD shooting as an argument for the ballroom.
“Trump has always been a brilliant opportunist,” he said.
It is also not certain whether other non-media groups not affiliated with the U.S. government would agree to hold their signature events, which might include a president’s appearance, in a ballroom under that president’s control.
National Prayer Breakfast was also organized at Hilton
Since the National Prayer Breakfast began in 1953, every U.S. president has attended, including Trump, who in February gave a speech at the event, attended by several members of Congress, touting his administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration.
That breakfast was held at the Washington Hilton, the same location where it has been held since the 1980s, and the same location as Saturday’s WHCD program. The Hilton has a 30,000-square-foot ballroom, one of the largest ballrooms in Washington.
Virginia Republican Representative Ben Cline, who co-chairs the Prayer Breakfast, said in a statement to CNBC on Tuesday that the event will be held at the Hilton next year.
“It is an honor to return the event to the Washington Hilton this year, and safety will be a top priority when we hold it there again,” Cline said.
“Although I support the construction of a new White House ballroom, I am confident in the ability of the Secret Service to protect and defend the President.”
Virginia Cantor, Chief Counsel and Director of Ethics and Anti-Corruption Democracy Defense FundAn advocacy group that has supported several legal challenges to Trump’s policies said, “It’s obscene that they would use a potentially tragic event to justify building a gilded ballroom for this man.”
“I don’t think he took two beats before trying to push this ballroom justification,” Cantor said.
“What we’re saying is will the president only hold events in the ballroom? Do we have to build another ballroom at Mar-a-Lago?” Cantor asked, referring to Trump’s residence and private club in Palm Beach, Florida.
Cantor said that in addition to being a government position, the office of president “is also a political one.”
“They have to go out to the public at events that take place outside the confines of the White House,” he said.
Trump, other presidents travel the country and the world
Cantor said Trump’s security arguments for the ballroom are belied by events across the country, including rallies.
“I mean, it’s crazy. He goes golfing every weekend,” she said.
Trump was the target of one Attempted assassination while playing golf at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach on September 15, 2024. A Secret Service agent foiled that attempt.
Cantor said, “The ballroom is a vanity project; it is not a national security project.” “The ballroom is being built because he wants to leave his mark on the White House.”
“The solution is not to have a ballroom every time there is a security event.”
Construction cranes are seen from the Washington Monument, at the site of the former East Wing of the White House in Washington, DC, on April 17, 2026.
Anna Moneymaker getty images
Cantor said that if Trump or other presidents insist on holding events in which they are guests at the ballroom, “that would give them control over the invitation list.”
He said he expected it would be a non-starter for the White House Correspondents’ Association.
Asked about criticism of the ballroom, White House spokesman Davis Ingle said in a statement Tuesday, “As President Trump has repeatedly said, the White House has long needed a secure facility that can host large public gatherings without jeopardizing the safety of the President and the safety of all staff, guests and visitors.”
“The ballroom has been carefully designed with advanced security features – including bulletproof glass, drone detection technology, projectile resistant materials and many other national security functions that will make it the safest ballroom anywhere in the world,” Ingle said.
“It’s a very legitimate case … that there is a need for a larger entertainment space at the White House,” said Dylan Heitler-Gaudet, acting vice president for policy and government affairs at the Project on Government Oversight, another advocacy group.
“I don’t think it’s a completely absurd idea,” Heidtler-Gaudet said, adding that currently, when the White House hosts large events like dinners, she sets up a tent on the lawn.
But Heitler-Gaudet objected that Trump’s ballroom project was initiated without congressional permission, without input from other government entities that typically focus on the design and scope of such a building, and with private funding from companies that do business with and are subject to regulatory oversight with the federal government.
He also pointed to Trump’s reference to the ballroom in a White House press conference immediately after his firing Saturday following the Hilton shooting, and that incident was widely used by his supporters on social media as an argument for the ballroom on Sunday.
“When it’s so fast, and it’s so universal, it seems gimmicky,” Heidtler-Gaudet said.
He said the shooting, which led to the arrest of a California man on attempted murder charges against Trump and other charges, is “very serious.”
Heidtler-Gaudet said “an attempt is being made to take advantage of that” while the ballroom faces legal opposition and while it is not supported by the majority of the public, “I find it disgusting.”
He suspected that if the ballroom was built, it would be used frequently by outside groups, as Trump has suggested.
“How likely is it that the White House might allow a trade association to rent (the ballroom) to host a dinner?” Heidtler-Gaudet asked.
He said that of the groups that might be suitable to use the ballroom while Trump is in office, “I could imagine….that it would be some kind of broader MAGA ecosystem,” referring to the president’s “Make America Great Again” movement.
The DOJ, which is defending Trump in a lawsuit challenging the ballroom, doubled down on its attack on the National Trust for Historic Preservation in a court filing Monday night — calling the group’s name “fake” — arguing that a federal judge breached an injunction that would halt construction.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanch wrote, “Saturday’s minor misstep – which marks the third assassination attempt on President Trump since 2024 – confirms what should have already been obvious.”
“Presidents need a safe venue for large events, which does not currently exist in Washington, D.C., and this Court’s injunction halting this project cannot defensible continue for the safety of President Trump, future presidents, and their families, Cabinets, and staff,” Blanch wrote.