US President Donald Trump on Tuesday revealed previously undisclosed details about his new bunker-like White House ballroom, saying it would have a drone base on the roof and a military hospital as part of a six-storey subterranean complex.
Amid the bang and clang of construction, Trump took a group of reporters on a tour of the project to try to bolster his argument that the US Congress should allocate $1bn (R16.6bn) to pay for security enhancements to the building.
Democrats and some Republicans are balking at the request, calling it extravagant as Americans grapple with spiraling gasoline prices and other fallout from Trump’s war on Iran ahead of the November midterm elections.
Trump, a billionaire real estate developer, did not hold back in describing previously unknown details about the project, which at 8,361m² stands to dwarf the adjacent White House built in the late 18th century.
Trump has argued the ballroom is needed for large events of 1,000 people, far more capacity than the White House entertainment spaces can accommodate. He pressed his case for the ballroom after an apparent assassination attempt at a Washington hotel where he was attending a media gala, arguing it would be a much more secure venue.
Trump detailed the ballroom’s security features, describing a bunker-like structure with a hardened roof able to withstand a direct attack.
He said titanium fencing recently installed around the ballroom was so strong “a bulldozer cannot knock it over”. The roof, he said, would be constructed of “impenetrable steel”.
Beneath the ballroom there will be a complex extending six storeys deep, he said, pointing to two under construction.
The underground complex would include a military hospital and research facilities, though Trump did not explain the focus of the research. The White House declined to provide further details.
He spoke excitedly about installation of a drone base on the roof “set up for unlimited numbers of drones”.
“The entire roof is built for military,” he said. “They have a massive drone capacity. Not only is it drone-proof, if a drone hits it, it bounces off, it won’t have any impact. It’s also meant as a drone port that would protect all of Washington.”
The ballroom’s windows would be 10cm thick and made from a special kind of glass.
Trump said: “You can see through it as though it doesn’t exist.”
Reuters
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