Paolo Tiramani, founder of a Las Vegas modular housing company, heard that Donald Trump wanted to build a large, gold-emblazoned ballroom in the White House and he spied an opportunity.
Tiramani quickly wrote a $10mn cheque, via a fund, joining dozens of deep-pocketed donors in bankrolling Trump’s latest real estate scheme, and getting a personal audience with the president.
The money was an “appreciation of what the president is doing”, said Tiramani, who was invited to dine with Trump alongside billionaires Ike Perlmutter and oil mogul Harold Hamm.
The question of whether the construction of the 999-seater ballroom offers corporations and donors another chance to curry favour with the Trump administration has swirled around Washington this week, as bulldozers have demolished the White House’s historic East Wing.
“I understand it’s controversial,” the entrepreneur added, but “it is not a personal project — [Trump] is not taking it with him when he leaves”.
While hosting top donors at a glitzy dinner last week, the president depicted the project — which he initially said would not require the destruction of existing federal property — as a chance for “patriots” to contribute to enhance the “prestige” of the White House.
Tech giants Amazon, Google and Meta answered the fundraising call. So did a number of companies that have sought regulatory relief or policy changes from this administration. Meta and Amazon did not respond to a request for comment. Google declined to comment.
Alphabet subsidiary YouTube told a court last month that its $22mn settlement with Trump over the suspension of his account in 2021 would be donated to the ballroom fund. Lockheed Martin, the US government’s largest defence contractor, has reportedly pledged $10mn to the project.
“Lockheed Martin is grateful for the opportunity to help bring the president’s vision to reality and make this addition to the people’s house, a powerful symbol of the American ideals we work to defend every day,” said a company spokesperson.
Crypto companies Tether, Coinbase and Ripple and Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, the founders of crypto group Gemini, were also among the donors, according to the White House. The SEC has dropped cases against Coinbase, Ripple and Gemini in the past few months.
Tobacco company Reynolds American and another tobacco group Altria, which have benefited from the Trump administration scrapping a Biden-era plan to ban menthol cigarettes and flavoured cigars, were also among the contributors to the ballroom fund. The companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Democrats on congressional committees have claimed such contributions raise concerns about the “transparency, funding priorities . . . and the ethical integrity” of the Trump administration, and have sought to obtain records from the White House that might show whether donors expected access or favourable decisions by the federal government in return for their financial support.
But Tiramani, whose company BOXABL stands to benefit if federal laws are passed streamlining the regulation of modular housing, said that his involvement had nothing to do with any discussions he and his son have had with relevant agencies.
“The president wouldn’t even be aware of discussions we are having at the federal or local level,” he said. “This was a donation to help the country.”
Trump, who initially said the project would cost $200mn, has since boasted about an influx of new donations, which he said would cover an expanded $350mn budget.
The president has also justified the project as necessary for the US to host foreign dignitaries.
In his speech at the donor dinner, Trump referred to hosting China’s Xi Jinping and France’s Emmanuel Macron on state visits, for which a marquee is usually put up in the White House grounds.
“You’ve got about four inches of water — literally it’s going over your shoes and you’re trying to pretend that it’s not happening, but it’s happening,” he said.
For others, it is Trump’s plan that threatens to undermine the dignity of the US.
The modern East Wing was built by Franklin D Roosevelt’s administration to house additional staff during the second world war and later became a centre for social functions and the first lady’s office.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation, created by Congress to safeguard national landmarks, on Tuesday pleaded with the White House to pause the revamp until changes could be made to ensure the “historic integrity and symbolism of the People’s House”. The Society of Architectural Historians made a similar plea a week earlier.
Chelsea Clinton, the daughter of Bill and Hillary Clinton, posted on X: “The erasure of the East Wing isn’t just about marble or plaster — it’s about President Trump again taking a wrecking ball to our heritage, while targeting our democracy, and the rule-of-law.”
Donald Trump Jr responded, with a reference to Bill Clinton’s affair with Monica Lewinsky: “Lol, your parents tried stealing furniture and silverware from the White House . . . and let’s not talk about the intern. Sit this one out.”
The White House has sought to defend the demolition of the East Wing. This week it added a gallery to its official website that detailed the ways Democrats had supposedly defiled the building. It highlighted Clinton’s sex scandal, Hunter Biden’s drug use, and the filming of a topless video by a guest for Transgender Day of Visibility during the last administration.
Trump donors praised the renderings for the demolition of the 123-year-old building and its replacement.
“There will be a lot of gold,” Tiramani said, “but it will be nice.”
Additional reporting by Lauren Fedor in Washington and Steff Chávez in Mexico City
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