On Friday, the Department of Justice attempted to justify the need for President Donald Trump’s much-demanded White House ballroom by making a claim that has raised some eyebrows. Trump needs the ballroom, says the DOJ, because of the threat of a missile attack against Air Force One — a threat received on the other side of the world, no less.
This is according to Politico senior legal affairs reporter Josh Gerstein, who posted, “JUST IN: DOJ, in ballroom appeal to #SCOTUS, says July 8 threat of missile attack on Air Force One was an 'assassination attempt' on Trump.” Gerstein attached a screenshot of the DOJ’s appeal, which argues that Trump needs the ballroom due to a “growing number of recent assassination attempts.” In addition to the now much-publicized threat against Air Force One last month while Trump was visiting Turkey, it lists the attack during the White House Correspondents' Dinner, the attempted shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania, a possible shooter caught stalking the president at Trump International Golf Club in Palm Beach, and a foiled plot to attack the UFC White House event with drones.
The DOJ is appealing a court order issued last week that blocks the ballroom construction. In its majority opinion, the court declared, “Executive actions that take control of that property out of the hands of the people’s representatives while irreparably harming the historical and visual architecture of perhaps the most prominent public building in the United States seriously intrude on the public interest.” Its ruling is temporarily on hold, however, while the Supreme Court hears the appeal.
While Trump initially claimed he wanted the ballroom to host state functions, his rationale shifted to the need for increased security as the public and courts pushed back against the expensive project. After judges shot down the ballroom idea, he suddenly began referring to it as a “Military Center” in an attempt to redefine and justify it. Trump also initially said that the ballroom would be paid for by private donors, but it has since come out that taxpayers will foot the bill, which has ballooned to over $900 million.
The latest justification is based on the recent bombshell revelation that Trump had secretly switched planes during a visit to Turkey due to a supposed threat of a missile attack against Air Force One. Intelligence on the attack provided by Israel, however, was classified as “low confidence” by the CIA, raising questions about the validity of the threat. Many commentators have pointed out other issues with the claim.
“Assume for the sake of argument there was a credible threat,” noted one. “What does that have to do with the ballroom?”
“What the heck does the ballroom really have to do with all this?!” wondered another. “Above ground work is the real issue anyway. Not the new underground bunker.”
“Soooo,” mused another still. “According to that logic how would a DC Ballroom protect the Orange Man-Frog in Turkey?”
