Report exposes sketchy no-bid deals as costs spiral on Trump's vanity ballroom project

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80,024 views May 6, 2026 #trump #ballroom #taxes

Jen Psaki shares details from a New York Times report about Donald Trump awarding sketchy no-bid contracts for federal construction projects, including his ballroom vanity project, and points out how the cost has both ballooned and shifted to being a taxpayer burden with a new request from Republicans for $1 billion in taxpayer money for Trump's ballroom. MS NOW: My Source for News, Opinion, and the World. » Subscribe to MS NOW: / @msnow » Subscribe to MS NOW’s We the People Newsletter for exclusive content from your favorite MS NOW anchors. Sign up now for free at https://ms.now/joinus MS NOW is the go-to destination for domestic and international breaking news, and best-in-class opinion journalism. For more context and news coverage of the most important stories of our day click here: https://www.ms.now/ #trump #ballroom #taxes

Transcript

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Today, Republicans in the Senate too the giant spending bill they are trying to rush through Congress and added a billion dollars to it.

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One billion dollars of your hard-earned tax dollars specifically earmarked to build Trump's lavish White House ballroom.

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Now, that one billion dollar price track would be eye-popping even if it came out of thin air, but it

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would cost $250 million.

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It's going to cost right in the neighborhood of $300 million.

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In July, the White House said it would cost $200 million. Yesterday, the president said $300 million.

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Is $300 million now the operative figure and why did it go up by so much 300 million is the figure and again it's not going to cost

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the taxpayers a dime that didn't age well I mean first Trump was going to pay for it then donors THAT'S HOW IT'S ALL GONE.

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AND, OH, BY THE WAY, NOW IT'S GOING TO COST A BILLION DOLLARS.

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AND IF THE NEW TAXPAYER FUNDED BILLION-DOLLAR PRICE TRACK ON TRUMP'S EVER BALLOONING BALLROOM WASN'T SKETCHY ENOUGH TO BEGIN WITH, WHICH IT IS.

1 minute, 13 seconds

THAT NEW PRICE TAG COMES JUST A WEEK AFTER THE NEW YORK TIMES GOT THIS SCOOP. HERE'S THE HEADLINE FROM IT.

1 minute, 19 seconds

FIRM BUILDING TRUMP'S BALLROOM GOT A SECRET NO-BID CONTRACT FOR A NEARBY JOB. ALL RIGHT, SO HERE'S THE DETAILS THERE.

1 minute, 26 seconds

LAST SUMMER TRUMP CHOSE A MARYLAND-BASED CONSTRUCTION COMPANY TO BUILD HIS WHITE HOUSE SPOTROOM AND THEN AS THE NEW YORK TIMES REPORTS IT IN JANUARY

1 minute, 34 seconds

GOVERNMENT DOCUMENTS SHOW THAT THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION SECRETLY GAVE THE COMPANY A NO-BID CONTRACT TO DO ANOTHER JOB AT A SHARPLY INFLATED PRICE.

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THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE WANTED TO REPAIR THESE TWO FOUNTAINS IN LAFAYETTE PARK,

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WHICH IS JUST RIGHT ACROSS THE STREET FROM THE WHITE House.

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In 2022, the Biden administration estimated the work would cost about $3 .3 million. The Trump administration paid $17 .4 million.

1 minute, 59 seconds

Now to arrive at that much higher THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ADDED WORK LIKE BUILDING BENCHES. WHAT KIND OF A BENCH IS THAT, BY THE WAY? AND A Kiosk.

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BUT THE ADMINISTRATION ALSO DID THINGS LIKE ADD MORE THAN A MILLION DOLLARS TO ADJUST FOR INFLATION WHICH ALREADY SOUNDS LIKE A LOT OF MONEY TO ADD, THEY MUST INFLATION IS REALLY BAD UNDER TRUMP.

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AND THEN GUESS WHAT? THEY DID IT TWICE.

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THE PARK SERVICE LITERALLY INCREASED THE PRICE BY 27 % TO ADJUST FOR INFLATION AND THEN TOOK THAT NUMBER AND increase it

2 minutes, 28 seconds

by another 24 percent to adjust for inflation again. Now that is some creative accounting.

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Now by law, federal agencies are supposed to seek competitive bids when contracting at work.

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Multiple companies compete with each other typically to try to create the best proposal at the lowest cost to win contracts like this one from the government.

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That's how the process is supposed to work.

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It's not how the process worked here to state the obvious.

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The Trump administration just so happened to give this inflated contract to the same construction company that is building Trump's ballroom without considering offers from any other firms.

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And the administration cited a rarely used urgency exception to avoid the bidding process,

3 minutes, 6 seconds

an exception that is usually meant for emergencies like, say, war or natural disasters.

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But in this case, a spokesperson for the Department of Interior told The Times that,

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quote, the urgency is to ensure this project is done well ahead of America's 250th anniversary.

3 minutes, 21 seconds

She added that the way the contract was awarded was above board.

3 minutes, 25 seconds

The construction company itself did not respond to specific questions about the ballroom or fountain projects,

3 minutes, 31 seconds

but they told The Times that their track record reflects the quality of their work and their commitment to integrity. Okay, hold that in your mind.

3 minutes, 39 seconds

Now, on its own, that $17 .4 million no-bid contract is suspicious, to say the least.

3 minutes, 46 seconds

But of OF COURSE, THAT NO-BID CONTRACT IS NOT A ONE-OFF.

3 minutes, 50 seconds

TWO MONTHS AGO, THE NEW YORK TIMES REPORTED A WHOLE SLEW OF NO-BID CONTRACTS FROM THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION THAT JUST SO HAPPENED TO

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FUNNEL $13 MILLION WORTH OF WORK TO THE firm that planned Trump's rally at the ellipse on January 6th.

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Now, I guess that's what they mean by a record of work, an impeccable record of work, I suppose.

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Now, the White House told The Times that it was not involved in awarding any of those CONTRACTS AND THE AGENCIES THAT DID AWARD THE CONTRACTS,

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THE TREASURY AND THE NAVY BOTH JUSTIFIED THE LACK OF A BIDDING PROCESS BY SAYING THE PROJECTS WERE ON CONDENSED TIMELINES.

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SAYING THAT THE FIRM THAT PLANNED TRUMP'S JANUARY 6th RALLY WAS SIMPLY THE ONLY VENDOR CAPABLE OF COMPLETING THE JOB ON TIME.

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SURE, OKAY.

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AND NOW EVEN WITH THAT INCREDIBLY RECENT HISTORY OF THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION HANDING OUT INCREDIBLY SKETCHY GOVERNMENT

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REPUBLICANS WANT TO EARMARK $1 BILLION OF YOUR TAX DOLLARS FOR TRUMP'S BALLROOM, WHICH HE MIGHT JUST USE AS A GIANT SLUSH FUND.

4 minutes, 46 seconds

NOW, THAT'S THE BAD NEWS, ALL OF THAT IS A LOT OF BAD THE GOOD NEWS IS THIS, DEMOCRATS MIGHT BE ABLE TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT.

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FOR 18 MONTHS NOW, DEMOCRATS HAVE RESPONDED TO STORIES ABOUT POTENTIAL TRUMP GRIFTS WITH LISTS OF DEMANDS LAID OUT IN STRONGLY WORDED LETTERS.

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BUT THEY HAVEN'T ACTUALLY HAD THE POWER TO FORCE THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION TO comply with any of those demands.

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The midterms could change that and the White House knows that.

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Now yesterday, and I alluded to this reporting a little bit earlier, the Washington Post reported that White House lawyers have begun to prep White House staff for how to deal with a Democratic Congress.

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White House staffers are literally being shown PowerPoint presentations about how congressional oversight works,

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with the implication that that very oversight might soon be coming for them. Yeah, there you go.

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Now, coming up, Pete Buttigieg referenced a special

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Wednesday, May 6, 2026