B (4:08)
Talk about 1600 for the first word. That's right. The White House, you know, the left, the Democrats, the drive by media, as Rush like to call them, they're all in a tizzy right now, hyperventilating over what President Trump and what he's doing at the White House. Eleven out of the 30 questions at today's press conference was press secretary were about the White House ballroom. Oh, he's demolishing history. He's spending taxpayer money on a ballroom. It's unprecedented. Impeach him again, they say. Give me a break. These people wouldn't know history if it slapped him in the face. But I'm here to set the record straight, my friends, because what Trump is doing right now, tearing down parts of the East Wing to build a magnificent new ballroom for 350 million is not out of the ordinary at all. No, sir. It's about as American as apple pie. And it's got a long, proud tradition going back to the very founding of this great nation. Let me walk you through it. First off, let's go back to the beginning, shall we? The White House didn't just pop up out of thin air like some liberal utopia. No, it started in 1792 when they laid that Cornerstone designed by an Irish guy, James Hoban, and in that fancy neoclassical style. Think big European mansions, but Americanized. President John Adams moves in in 1800, and guess what? The place isn't even finished. Rooms without plaster, no fancy amenities. It's a work in progress from day one. And that's the key, folks. The White House has never been some frozen in time museum piece. It's a living, breathing building. The presidents have been tweaking, expanding, and outright rebuilding ever since. Think of your own house. You add a deck, you fix a roof, you put in a new kitchen when the old one's falling apart. But, oh, no, when Trump does it, it's a big scandal. Now, talk about drama. How about 1814? The War of 1812. Those pesky British come marching in and burned the place to the ground, gutted it. Left nothing but the outer wall standing like a skeleton. President James Madison doesn't sit around wringing his hands like some snowflake. No, he rebuilds it from 1815 to 1817. Makes it stronger, adds improvements, better foundation, updates the inside. And not just patching it up. It's upgrading. And the left today wants to act like Trump's demolition crew is the first one to ever swing a hammer at the. This was a total destruction back then. And rebirth. And it made the White House tougher, just like America after a fight. Fast forward to the 19th century, and it's one president after another, turning the place into their own personal project. James Monroe slaps on the south portico in 1824, more grander for state events. Andrew Jackson adds the north Portico in 1829, making it look symmetrical and presidential. Then you've got tech upgrades. Martin Van Buren brings in running water in 1833. Imagine living without that. Millard Fillmore throws in central heating in 1853. These aren't little paint jobs. We're talking about. Major plumbing, structural overhauls, disruptions galore. How about overcrowding? Well, by the late 1800s, the place is bursting at the seams. Home and office all mashed together. Chester Arthur goes all out in 1882 with Tiffany decorations, fancy glass screens. But the big kahuna. Teddy Roosevelt, 1902, builds the entire west wing, separates the offices from the bedrooms, modernizes everything. His buddy Taft expands it in 1909, adds the Oval Office. Folks, that's not preservation, that's transformation. Presidents making the White House work for them, not the other way around. How about the 20th century? It's like a construction bonanza. FDR during the depression of World War II slaps on the east wing in 1942. Reception areas, offices, even underground bunkers for security. Sound familiar? That's right. The very East Wing that Trump's working on now was FDR's big addition, but the mother of all Renault's was Harry Truman. 1949-1952. The building was collapsing, floor sagging, walls cracking. Like a liberal argument. Trump. Truman guts the whole interior, Leaves just the outer walls. Rebuilds with steel beams, modern plumbing, air conditioning. Cost 5.7 million back then. It's like 60 million today. He displaced the whole first family for years. Controversial as heck over the price and scope. But did it save the White House? You bet it did. In the media back then, whined just like they do now. Jackie Kennedy in the 60s does her historical restorations, fancy furnishings, TV specials to show it off. Nixon in 69 turns the swimming pool into the press room. Reagan in the 80s adds bomb proof windows amid Cold War threats. Clinton wires it for the Internet in the 90s. Bush puts in solar panels, which of course got yanked later. Obama as a basketball court. And every green upgrade you can think of. Every single one of these presidents, Democrat or Republican, treated the White House like a canvas. Painting it with their vision, their needs, their era. Security, tech, personal touches. It's all there. So now, October 2025, here comes President Trump again, God bless him, taking on the East Wing demolition crews, ripping out chunks of that FDR era structure to build a massive 90,000 square foot ballroom for state dinners, receptions, big events. Cost 350 million. Satellite pictures now show the debris flying as of October 23rd. And the left is having a meltdown. The administration says the Old East Room just ain't cutting it for space. And the critics? Oh, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, fancy name. They're clutching their pearls, whining about integrity. No congressional oversight, questions about authority. Give a break. Presidents have been doing this forever without asking permission from every busybody in Congress. So the truth, folks, is there is nothing out of the ordinary one bit. It's right in line with history. See, the White House isn't a shrine, it's a working headquarters. The 1966 Historic Preservation act says balance history with modern use. And presidents have done just that. Consulting experts, then getting it done. Trump's team calls it a proud presidential legacy. And they're spot on. Bold, for sure, but no bolder than FDR's bunkers or Nixon's press room. These things have become part of the fabric. So Trump's 2025 project, just another chapter in a great American story. It's Presidential prerogative, pure and simple. The left hates it because they hate Trump, but facts don't care about their feelings. The White House survives because of these changes, not in spite of them. It's dynamic, it's leadership, it's American. And that's the truth. And that's tonight's first word. Yeah.
