3:31Efforts persist on the dismantling of a section of the White House’s East Wing, Oct. 21, 2025, in Washington, ahead of the erection of a fresh ballroom.Jacquelyn Martin/AP
Sources close to the undertaking informed ABC News that the White House anticipates the complete removal of the East Wing to make way for the edifice of what President Donald Trump now states to be his intended $300 million ballroom.
The sources indicated that the East Wing’s demolition could reach completion as early as this weekend.
The New York Times initially divulged the development.
The White House did not promptly furnish a response to a request for elucidation.
ABC News noted various construction vehicles moving in and out of the locality where the demolition proceeded on Wednesday. The refurbishment extends considerably beyond Trump’s previous disclosures.
Whereas Trump had declared back in July that the ballroom would not “interfere” with the prevailing building — would be “nearby but not attached” — a White House official verified to ABC News that the “entirety of the East Wing will undergo modernization.”
A taller, seven-foot barrier was noticeable on Wednesday surrounding the East Wing construction location, aiding in concealing the demolition from the view of the populace.
Work continues on the demolition of a part of the East Wing of the White House, Oct. 21, 2025, in Washington, before construction of a new ballroom.Jacquelyn Martin/AP
When questioned by a reporter during an event in the Oval Office on Wednesday about the divergence between the existing construction and his initial pronouncements, Trump minimized the differences.
President Donald Trump meets with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in the Oval Office of the White House, Oct. 22, 2025, in Washington.Alex Brandon/AP
“We concluded, following substantial deliberation with some of the most skilled architects globally, that complete removal and an attempt to salvage a minor portion were impractical. The East Wing had limited original elements remaining,” Trump conveyed.
“To execute it appropriately, dismantling the existing structure was imperative,” he remarked.
President Donald Trump holds a rendering of his proposed ballroom as he meets with Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Mark Rutte in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, October 22, 2025.Kevin Lamarque/Reuters
While publicizing new sanctions against Russia, he exhibited architectural representations of the ballroom and confronted a reporter who inquired as to why he had not been more forthright regarding the project, asserting that he has been “more transparent than anyone has ever been.”
“I have not been transparent? Seriously? I’ve displayed this to anyone who would lend an ear,” he stated.
Despite the commencement of demolition, the ballroom plans have yet to be submitted to the National Capital Planning Commission. A White House representative confirmed to ABC News that the White House still intends to present the construction plans to the commission.
The White House Historical Association communicated its “support for the safeguarding of East Wing history via a thorough digital scanning undertaking and photography to establish a historical record. The East Wing and its grounds have undergone detailed capture for the benefit of our nation, and historical relics from the East Wing have been preserved and secured.”
A White House source conveyed that “all historical elements of the East Wing… have been preserved and stored under the direction of the White House Executive Residence and the National Park Service, with aid from the White House Historical Association. Strategies are in place for their subsequent utilization.”
As per a White House official, the Office of the First Lady and other components of the East Wing have been moved within the White House complex to the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. A White House source verified to ABC News that the First Lady’s office and its personnel were relocated from the area more than a month prior to the demolition.
A window dangles from the East Wing as work continues on the demolition of a part of the East Wing of the White House, Oct. 21, 2025, in Washington, before construction of a new ballroom.Jacquelyn Martin/AP
Trump has harbored aspirations of constructing a ballroom at the White House comparable to the one at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. Projections for the 90,000-square foot ballroom were revealed this summer, and Trump stated that he and anonymous benefactors would fund the construction. The administration has divulged minimal information since then regarding the specific sources of funding for the project, thereby eliciting ethical and legal concerns.
Earlier this week, Trump implied that upon the project’s completion, individuals would be able to proceed directly from the White House East Room into the ballroom, implying that the construction would adjoin the White House itself — a scenario that Trump had previously refuted.
According to a White House representative, the East Wing was undergoing “modernization” from its 1902 and 1942 constructions to sustain the ballroom venture and the impending site of the East Wing. The official mentioned that the scope and scale of the project were always susceptible to modification as the process progressed.
The facade of the East Wing of the White House is demolished by work crews, October 22, 2025 in Washington.Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
People watch from outside a security fence as demolition continues on the East Wing of the White House, Oct. 22, 2025, in Washington.Jacquelyn Martin/AP
This week’s demolition inaugurated a surge of disapproval.
Former First Lady Hillary Clinton contributed her thoughts on Tuesday, stating on X that Trump is “vandalizing” the White House.
“This is not his residence. It is your residence. And he is defacing it,” Clinton penned.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation dispatched a message to White House Staff Secretary Will Scharf, whom Trump also appointed to steer the National Capital Planning Commission, an executive branch entity that delivers planning orientation and evaluates development proposals, expressing misgivings regarding the demolition and the ballroom design, and advocating for a suspension.
The White House East Wing RemodelingGoogle Earth
“While the National Trust concedes the practicality of a larger assembly area at the White House, we possess considerable apprehension that the accumulation and stature of the suggested fresh structure will overshadow the White House proper—it occupies 55,000 square feet—and might furthermore permanently disrupt the delicately counterbalanced classical layout of the White House along with its two smaller, and lower, East and West Wings,” communicated Dr. Carol Quillen, the trust’s president.
The nonprofit institution urged the administration “to defer demolition pending the progression of the projected ballroom plans through the legally mandated public review procedures, encompassing consultation and evaluation by the National Capital Planning Commission and the Commission of Fine Arts, and to solicit feedback from the public.”
Crews demolish the East Wing of the White House as construction begins on President Trump’s White House ballroom, in Washington, October 22, 2025.Aaron Schwartz/EPA/Shutterstock
The facade of the East Wing of the White House is demolished by work crews, October 22, 2025 in Washington.Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
The White House defended the renovations and the construction of the new ballroom in an expansive press announcement on Tuesday, affirming that the endeavor constitutes “a striking, indispensable inclusion that echoes the renowned legacy of enhancements and extensions from commanders-in-chief to sustain the executive residence as an exemplar of American preeminence.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, during her appearance on Fox News “Jesse Watters Primetime” on Tuesday, characterized the reaction as “manufactured indignation,” and asserted that preceding presidents have also instituted alterations to the White House.
“He epitomizes the builder-in-chief, he was, to a great extent, re-elected to this People’s House on account of his proficiency in construction. He has committed his entire existence, his entire career, to this,” Leavitt remarked. “And construction signifies a procedure. Ultimately, the East Wing, which stands as a completely detached structure from the Executive Mansion apparent behind me, will manifest as more modern and exquisite than ever before. And in addition to that, the White House is primed to acquire a spacious, magnificent ballroom for successive cohorts of Americans.”
However, a Wall Street Journal report indicates that the Treasury Department (situated adjacent to the renovation locale) has instructed personnel to abstain from disseminating images of the demolition.
Trump, who hosted Senate Republicans for luncheon at his newly remodeled Rose Garden Club on Tuesday, praised the construction of the ballroom.
“You are likely detecting the delightful resonance of construction at the rear. Do you perceive it? Ah, that resonates as melody to my ears,” Trump commented. “I revere that sound. While others may disapprove, I am fond of it.”
ABC News’ Michelle Stoddart and Alexandra Hutzler lent their contributions to this piece.
Sourse: abcnews.go.com
