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Title: White House Demolition Image ID: 25293751635660 Article: Work begins on the demolition of a part of the East Wing of the White House, Monday, Oct. 20, 2025, in Washington, before construction of a new ballroom. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Title: White House Demolition Image ID: 25293751635660 Article: Work begins on the demolition of a part of the East Wing of the White House, Monday, Oct. 20, 2025, in Washington, before construction of a new ballroom. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Trump's White House Ballroom Sparks Criticism Amid Shutdown

Davina Hurt, director, government ethics, quoted by Deutsche Welle (DW).

Critics see the renovation as problematic: "Is it fair for an administration to pursue expensive, mainly aesthetic projects while ordinary US citizens face financial strain and the government faces shutdown, where tens of thousands of federal workers are not receiving paychecks for their hard work?" asked Davina Hurt, director of the government ethics program in the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clara University.

 

Davina Hurt, director, government ethics, quoted by Deutsche Welle (DW).

 

 

Oct 23, 2025
Ethics
media, government

Work begins on the demolition of a part of the East Wing of the White House, Monday, Oct. 20, 2025, in Washington, before construction of a new ballroom. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)