Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), seen by many insiders as a potential 2028 presidential candidate, unveiled a plan to “annoy” President Donald Trump.
His plan?
Rename the White House after former President Barack Obama.
Gallego trolled President Trump yesterday on NBC News’ “Meet the Press” over the new renovation of the White House ballroom, suggesting Democrats rename it after Obama when they’re back in power.
Gallego was asked whether his party should tear down the ballroom if they get the chance, which Gallego responded, “No.
“I think to really mess with [Trump], just name it the Barack Obama ballroom,” Gallego said.
Gallego’s “plan” comes after speculation bubbled late last week that Trump would name the newly renovated ballroom after himself.
On Friday, Trump denied rumors that he intended to name ballroom after himself.
“I don’t have any plan to call it after myself — that was fake news,” Trump told reporters.
“We’re probably going to call it the Presidential Ballroom or something like that,” he said.
“We haven’t really thought about a name yet.”
During the Obama administration, Trump repeatedly offered up to $100 million as a private citizen for the construction of a glamorous, golden White House ballroom, but was denied.
However, after winning his second term as president, Trump made it clear that he wanted to build a ballroom.
Last week, construction crews began tearing down and demolishing the White House’s East Wing, which was built in the early 1900s before being expanded under Franklin D. Roosevelt.
In July, Trump had claimed that the ballroom would be installed in a way that “won’t interfere with the current building.
“It’ll be near it but not touching it,” he said.
While the East Wing is generally an afterthought compared to the White House’s celebrated West Wing, its teardown prompted outrage from Democrats, who fumed that Trump took bulldozers to the historic complex without consulting Congress.
“First of all, he should not have done that. It’s the people’s house,” Gallego said.
“Number two, where is the president? He’s focusing on the ballroom. He’s focused on everything. But he’s not focused on what’s happening right now.”
Despite heavy criticism of the project from Democrats like Gallego, a recently published editorial from The Washington Post claimed that former Obama and Biden administrations have privately acknowledged the need for a ballroom.
The ballroom project is meanwhile estimated to cost $300 million with Trump personally helping to foot the bill, alongside an array of donors.
Trump has argued that a ballroom is necessary for the US to be able to host world leaders at the White House without using outdoor tents.
The 90,000-square-foot ballroom project is expected to accommodate approximately 650 seated guests, according to the White House.
The ballroom construction comes after Trump made other updates to the White House, including installing two 88-foot-tall American flags and an overhaul to the White House Rose Garden.