Aug 12 (Reuters) – The Trump administration is set to spend at least $900 million for construction projects on the White House grounds, the Washington Post reported on Wednesday, citing records.
Instead of securing money directly from Congress, the administration has gathered funds from other agencies and private donors and directed them to an account that holds a few million dollars for routine maintenance of the White House, the report said.
Confidential contracts and related planning documents indicate that the administration plans to use money in that account for White House “modernization projects,” the report added.
Last week, a U.S. federal appeals court ordered the administration to stop construction on a $400 million ballroom on the site of the White House’s demolished East Wing, dealing the Republican leader a major setback in a case testing his presidential authority.
When asked for comment on the Washington Post report, a White House spokesperson reiterated that renovations to the East Wing are inextricably tied to the security of the president, the White House grounds and the security infrastructure assets.
U.S. President Donald Trump and other individuals are funding the ballroom to the tune of approximately $400 million, the spokesperson told Reuters.
(Reporting by Gursimran Kaur and Ruchika Khanna in Bengaluru; Editing by Alison Williams, Jason Neely and Mark Porter)
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