More than half of Americans disapprove of Donald Trump’s demolition of the White House’s East Wing and the construction of a new ballroom, according to a new poll from the Washington Post, ABC News and Ipsos.
The survey was conducted between 24 and 28 October and indicates 56% of the respondents disagree with Trump’s recent move while 28% are in favor of it. Most of the survey’s respondents were white, one-third of them voted for Donald Trump and another third voted for Kamala Harris in the 2024 election.
By 24 October, the East Wing, historically the home base for the first lady and her staff, had been reduced to rubble to make way for a $300m ballroom that Trump says is being paid for through his funds and private donations.
The East Wing was first known as the East Terrace and was built in 1902 during Theodore Roosevelt’s administration. In 1942, Franklin Roosevelt created the East Wing in its current form to add working space during the war, and conceal an underground bunker that had been constructed for the president and his staff.
Its demolition marks a reversal of the president’s earlier promise in July that none of the White House’s existing infrastructure would be torn down during construction of the ballroom.
“It will be beautiful. It won’t interfere with the current building. It won’t be – it will be near it, but not touching it. And pays total respect to the existing building, which I’m the biggest fan of. It’s my favorite,” Trump said at the time.
The ballroom, which is set to be 90,000 sq ft, nearly twice the size of the White House, will accommodate nearly 1,000 people, according to Trump.
The White House has said the ballroom will be ready for use well before Trump’s term ends in January 2029.
Thursday’s poll echoes a Yahoo/YouGov poll that was released earlier this week which found 61% of respondents saying they did not support Trump’s ballroom plan while 25% backed the move.
Reactions to the ballroom have stretched far and wide and escalated since demolition began. Elaine Kamarck, a former official who worked in the building from 1993 to 1997, told the Guardian earlier this month that it’s “an abomination”.
“It’s typical Trump and it’s going to look awful. They’re knocking down the entire East Wing of the White House. It’s not the end of the world but it’s just one more reason that Americans are getting sick of King Trump,” she said.
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