Senate Republicans Scrap $1 Billion White House Ballroom Plan Amid Internal Backlash

Senate Republicans are backing away from a proposal to steer about $1 billion in security money toward the White House complex and President Donald Trump’s long-promised ballroom project, after internal backlash and objections from lawmakers in their own party, according to reporting from Fast Company and The Independent.

The retreat comes as GOP senators leave Washington without a final legislative text or a clear path forward on the broader reconciliation package that is meant to fund Trump’s deportation agenda. That bill has become politically fraught because it combines major immigration-enforcement spending with the ballroom-related request, prompting criticism that the money amounts to an unaccountable “slush fund” for presidential priorities.

As reported by The Independent, Republican senators were departing the capital amid a revolt over the proposal, which has drawn anger from conservatives who question both the size of the request and the way it is being assembled. Fast Company reported that Senate Republican leaders were expected to abandon the $1 billion security funding for the White House ballroom after the White House pressed them to keep it in the package.

The dispute is part of a wider fight over how far Congress should go in bankrolling Trump’s immigration crackdown. The reconciliation measure is designed to provide substantial money for deportation-related operations, but lawmakers have struggled to agree on the details, and there is still no settled bill text. That uncertainty has added to tensions between the White House and Senate Republicans, some of whom are wary of being tied to a project that mixes border enforcement, detention, and a presidential renovation wish list.

The ballroom itself has become a political symbol in the broader budget battle. Supporters in the administration have framed the request as part of a larger White House complex upgrade, while critics argue it is being folded into legislation meant for national priorities and emergency spending. The backlash inside the GOP suggests the issue may not survive in its current form, even as Trump continues to push lawmakers to act.

What happens next is still unclear. Senate Republicans are expected to continue work on the reconciliation measure, but the latest retreat shows that even with their party controlling the chamber, the White House cannot count on automatic approval for expensive or politically sensitive items. For now, the clash underscores both the scale of Trump’s spending ambitions and the limits of Republican unity when those ambitions collide with congressional resistance.