Within hours of gunfire interrupting the White House Correspondents' Association dinner on April 25 in a brazen third attempt on President Donald Trump's life, he and his allies rallied behind his already-planned $400 million ballroom project as a security solution.
For years, the annual event has been held at the Washington Hilton, but an armed man shooting at the Secret Service inside the hotel has created a new justification for the controversial construction plan for a massive addition to the White House that would dwarf the main building itself.
The work has already been blocked by one federal judge, then unblocked by a federal appeals court, and slammed by Democrats as too costly and glitzy at a time when Americans are struggling with basic costs. Currently, the ballroom construction continues while a lawsuit by the National Trust for Historic Preservation plays out.
The president, however, said on social media on April 26, the shooting is "exactly the reason" that a "secure ballroom" with an underground bunker is needed. The accused shooter, Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, California, was formally charged on April 27 with attempting to assassinate Trump and multiple weapons charges. Allen could face life in prison if convicted.
