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At the very beginning, when we all first heard about him wanting a ballroom three and a half times the size of the White House on the grounds of the people’s house, and from the very moment he began to tear down the East Wing of the White House and break ground for the ballroom, I screamed “NO!” And I’ve screamed no every day since. And I was the very first person to say back then that whoever the 2028 Democratic nominee is, they must pledge to rebuild the East Wing and tear down/demolish whatever the ballroom is on day one.
And I meant it. The Democratic nominee must make that pledge and actually mean it and actually carry it out. In fact, I said that if no Democratic candidate makes that pledge and REALLY means it, I will run for president promising to demolish the ballroom on day one. And I meant it then and still mean it now.
And of course, over the past year, I’ve been bombarded by folks from the right accusing me of bizarre Trump derangement syndrome, but I’ve also been regularly criticized by Democrats who — though they can’t stand the thought of the ballroom — wish I’d focus on more important things like the economy and Trump’s illegal war against Iran. The ballroom sucks, Joe, they tell me, but at the end of the day we should focus on the things that REALLY matter.
Tearing down the ballroom does REALLY matter. More than almost anything else. Here’s why: Because for the first time in American history, the American people put a fascist in the White House, and the ballroom, if it’s allowed to stand, will forever be a concrete monument on public property to fascism. And we must never have a monument to fascism on public grounds in this country.
For the past ten years, and especially the past year and a half, Donald Trump has done whatever he wants, and he’s NEVER been held accountable. He believes he’s above the law, so he breaks laws whenever he wants, he engages in obscene levels of public corruption, he lies every time he opens his mouth, he defies the Constitution at every turn, on a daily basis he does things he does not have the legal authority to do, he repeatedly destroys and dismantles our uniquely American institutions, he spits at our norms, he — and our government in his name — engages in routine acts of cruelty and evil, and he’s NEVER been held accountable for any of it. For ANY of it. Hell, he committed crimes trying to overthrow an American election, and he got away with that. He’s actively sabotaging the 2026 midterms, and he’s getting away with that.
He believes he’s a dictator, and we’ve allowed him to act like a dictator.
The ballroom is a concrete manifestation of his lawlessness, it’s a concrete manifestation of his dictatorship, it’s a concrete manifestation of his never being held accountable for anything. Because the truth is, no matter what anyone thinks of the ballroom, HE DOES NOT HAVE THE LEGAL AUTHORITY TO BUILD IT. He doesn’t. That authority resides with Congress. Building the ballroom is an ILLEGAL act. Even Chief Justice Roberts in his dissent two days ago said it’s an illegal act.
So here we go again? One more time, we all just fucking shrug our shoulders and say “yep, what he’s doing is wrong, it’s illegal, but…we can’t stop it, he’s already building it, construction has already commenced, it would be too costly to object at this point, yada, yada, yada.”
NO!
This is why it’s so fucking important to stand athwart and shout “No!” We must stop this hopeless cycle of him doing illegal things and we just shrug and let him get away with it. The ballroom is that opportunity. It’s our opportunity to finally push back and actually STOP his lawlessness. The ballroom is the concrete manifestation of Trump’s “getting away with breaking the law.” It is a gross symbol of the fascist’s lawlessness. This is why it must come down. To remind the American people and show the world that fascism can never stand in this country. If that ballroom is allowed to stand, then fascism stands.
One other thing: The White House is the people’s house. IT’S OUR FUCKING HOUSE, NOT HIS. He’s just allowed to sleep and work there for four years. No American renting an apartment or a house has the right to demolish or rehab that apartment or house they are renting. That’s up to the OWNER of the apartment or house. WE are the owners of the White House.
One other thing: WE DON’T DO PALACES IN AMERICA. The ballroom will be three and a half times the size of the White House. Trump is building it to be a huge, gold, gaudy palace, the very antithesis of what our founders and the political leaders and designers of the White House intended. They intended for the people’s house to be a humble, approachable, everyday piece of property to contrast us with England’s royalty and to reflect the democratic nature of this country. No kings, no palaces in America. Trump has been allowed to govern like a king and he’s now being allowed to build a palace.
We must say no, and whatever he ends up building must come down.
And I mean it. I will not vote for a Democrat who does not understand this and does not pledge to tear it down. If I became president, tearing the ballroom down and rebuilding the East Wing would be job #1. We’d make a national month of “healing” around it, and I’d invite regular Americans from all over the country to help demolish it. Because America can never, and will never, heal or recover from having the first fascist in American history in the White House as long as that concrete monument to fascism is standing.
Be Brave,
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