Top Republicans are now pushing for taxpayers to cover the $400 million cost of President Donald Trump‘s long-stalled White House ballroom project, despite Trump’s earlier claims that it would be entirely privately funded. The shift comes after a shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday, which led many lawmakers to frame the ballroom as a national security need.
According to The Independent, Sen. Lindsey Graham was among the first Republicans to change his position, citing security concerns. “It’s very difficult to have a bunch of important people in the same place unless it’s really, really secure,” Graham told reporters on Monday. “The times in which we live are unusual. I’ve been up here for a while now. I’ve never felt the sense of threat that exists today.”
