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THE DUMBEST CYCLE: National Media Obsess Over Local Zoning Dispute
It is not often that legacy media national newscasts devote precious A-block time to what amounts to an ongoing renovation with zoning board issues. But in an endless Trump Resistance media loop, the construction of the new White House ballroom is a unique affront to the nation’s institutional integrity- and draws such coverage.
The worst of this coverage was on ABC. Watch anchor David Muir’s overwrought introduction to Mary Brice’s report:
DAVID MUIR: We turn now to the growing controversy over the demolition at The White House and all of this playing out in the middle of this government shutdown now day 22 with thousands of federal workers losing their jobs. Tonight sources telling ABC News the entire East Wing is expected to be demolished as soon as this weekend to clear the way for President Trump's $300 million ballroom. Some Republicans tonight now questioning the optics of this especially during the shutdown. And now former First Lady Hillary Clinton saying to the American people,” it's not his house, it's your house and he's destroying it.”
ABC was the only legacy newscast to mention the shutdown and attempt to huff about “optics.” Mary Bruce’s report was heavy on concern over the history of The White House, deference to history, Bruce even worked in a quote from former First Lady Hillary Clinton. Whereas the introduction teased Republicans concerned over shutdown optics, the report produced only one: outgoing Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina.
CBS and NBC’s reports were slightly better inasmuch as they didn't tether their reporting to the shutdown. CBS’s Weijia Jiang got a former member of one of the zoning boards to whine, and she got Laura Bush’s chief of staff. NBC’s Gabe Gutierrez found a Democrat senator willing to make this about authoritarianism:
DICK BLUMENTHAL: It's his personal whim and it is sort of emblematic of the authoritarian, tyrannical approach that this president takes to power.
All in all, the ballroom hubbub remains one the dumber resistance cycles in recent memory. The media would probably not even care, were the renovations were done under any other president. But this is Trump, and Trump Derangement demands the performance of ridiculous Resistance Theater at every turn- even if the matter in question amounts to a zoning dispute.
Click “expand” to view the full transcripts of the aforementioned reports as aired on their respective newscasts on Wednesday, October 22nd, 2025:
ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT
10/22/25
6:35 PM
DAVID MUIR: We turn now to the growing controversy over the demolition at The White House and all of this playing out in the middle of this government shutdown now day 22 with thousands of federal workers losing their jobs. Tonight sources telling ABC News the entire East Wing is expected to be demolished as soon as this weekend to clear the way for President Trump's $300 million ballroom. Some Republicans tonight now questioning the optics of this especially during the shutdown. And now former First Lady Hillary Clinton saying to the American people,” it's not his house, it's your house and he's destroying it.” ABC's Mary Bruce tonight.
MARY BRUCE: Tonight, sources tell ABC News President Trump is aiming to tear down the entire East Wing of The White House by this coming weekend to make way for his new ballroom, which Trump now says will cost $300 million. When he announced the project, the president pledged it would not interfere with the building known as The People's House.
DONALD TRUMP: It won't interfere with the current building. It won't be -- it'll be near it but not touching it. And pays total respect to the existing building, which I'm the biggest fan of.
BRUCE: This week, the nation's capital taken by surprise when bulldozers and cranes started demolition.
TRUMP: In order to do it properly we had to take down the existing structure.
BRUCE: So from here we can get a glimpse of this massive construction project. And we can see these huge bulldozers ripping away at the walls, debris flying down everywhere. All that's left of the East Wing now, this mangled exposed structure.
The original East Wing built in 1902. It was updated in 1942 and has been the traditional home for the First Lady's offices. In 1962, Jackie Kennedy giving Americans their first televised glimpse. Tonight, former First Lady Hillary Clinton dismayed posting: “It's not his house, it's your house and he's destroying it.” The National Trust for Historic Preservation is calling on the administration to pause demolition until plans for the proposed ballroom go through the legally required public review processes. They also write they're deeply concerned the planned 90,000 square foot ballroom larger than the iconic residence building will overwhelm The White House itself. The White House hasn't submitted plans for the ballroom to the National Capital Planning Commission but tells us they still intend to, even though demolition is already well under way.
TRUMP: This is an interior shot of the ballroom. I think there will be nothing like it and it's being paid for 100% by me and some friends of mine, donors, the government is paying absolutely nothing.
BRUCE: The president insists this is all paid for with private donations. But on Capitol Hill, some Republican lawmakers wish he’d change the subject . With the government now shut down, thousands of government workers missing paychecks and millions of Americans now worried about putting food on the table.
THOM TILLIS: We're talking about building a ballroom when we're trying to get the economy squared away. The timing is bad.
BRUCE: Tonight, House Speaker Mike Johnson, who has kept the House out of session for 22 days and counting, praising the president’s ballroom plan.
MIKE JOHNSON: President Trump’s going to add the greatest improvement in the history of the building since it was originally constructed in 1900. The ballroom is going to be glorious. It's going to be used for everybody.
BRUCE: Again, this demolition catching much of Washington by surprise and The White House still has not submitted the plans for official review. But President Trump tonight insisting he's been, quote, “more transparent than anybody's ever been.” David.
MUIR: Mary Bruce at The White House tonight. Mary, thank you.
CBS EVENING NEWS
10/22/25
6:31 PM
MAURICE DuBOIS: We begin tonight with President Trump's expanding plans to architecturally transform The White House.
JOHN DICKERSON: Which we learned today includes the complete destruction of the East Wing.
DuBOIS: The first images that emerged on Monday of the ripped-down walls of the First Lady's wing sparked criticism from those who want to preserve the history of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
DICKERSON: And those who point to the president’s promise last summer that the massive, privately-funded ballroom he is building would not touch or interfere with the current building.
DuBOIS: The president calls the project a much-needed modernization. Critics call it a desecration.
DICKERSON: Senior White House Correspondent Weijia Jiang leads us off from the North Lawn. Weijia?
WEIJIA JIANG: Good evening. Tonight President Trump says the ballroom construction will cost $300 million, up from- up from $200 million, which was his original estimate. All paid for, as you mentioned, by private donors. Senior administration officials tell me it was always the plan to modernize the East Wing and demolishing it completely makes the most sense.
As construction crews continue to tear down the East Wing of The White House...
DONALD TRUMP: Nobody has actually seen anything quite like it. I think it will be one of the great ballrooms anywhere in the world.
JIANG: Tonight President Trump showed off the plan.
TRUMP: It's really an honor to add that great ballroom to the structures in Washington. It's going to be one of the great ballrooms of the world, and I think it's going to be something you're all going to be very proud of.
JIANG: The 90,000 square-foot ballroom, once finished, will be nearly double the size of the main White House building. The demolition has taken many by surprise, after Trump said this in July:
TRUMP: It won't interfere with the current building. It will be near it, but not touching it. And pays total respect to the existing building, which I'm the biggest fan of. It's my favorite.
JIANG: The First Lady's office has already been demolished. A family theater and a gift shop will also be flattened. In a new letter to the Trump administration, the National Trust for Historic Preservation wrote that the addition will overwhelm The White House itself and urged officials to pause the demolition until the plans have been reviewed by the National Capital Planning Commission, which approves plans for federal buildings. Bryan Green was a commissioner until July.
BRYAN GREEN: This is a building that belongs to all of us, as people. This is part of our heritage. This is part of our story as Americans. And we deserve to have that conversation about its fate and what happens to it.
JIANG: Tourists we spoke with on-site today were torn over the president’s project.
TOURIST: I think it's disgraceful. It's -- it's a desecration, really, I think. I don't know that anybody particularly wants a big ballroom.
TOURIST: Nixon had his bowling alley. JFK had a swimming pool, so, you know, he's adding his touch, and it’s going to be beautiful when it's done. Absolutely beautiful.
DuBOIS: So Weijia, you mentioned the National Capital Planning Commission has to review these renovation plans. Is The White House engaging with them right now?
JIANG: Yes, ait White House official says they will submit construction plans to the commission at an appropriate time, adding the group does not have oversight over demolitions. CBS News spoke with former First Lady Laura Bush’s chief of staff Anita McbBride, who said multiple East Wing alums across administrations are stunned by the demo images, sharing this quote from former First Lady Betty Ford, "If the West Wing is the mind of the nation, then the East Wing is its heart.”
DuBOIS: Okay. Weijia Jiang at The White House. Thanks so much.
NBC NIGHTLY NEWS
10/22/25
6:32 PM
TOM LLAMAS: And good evening. Tonight, we're learning just how dramatic and expansive the president's White House ballroom project really is. New pictures show the extent of the demolition. You see it right here. Construction equipment tearing into the historic East Wing building tonight. And now NBC News has learned the entire East Wing will come down in a matter of days. That according to two White House officials. It is a major shift from what the president said this summer, when he promised the new ballroom wouldn't touch the existing East Wing. Tonight, President Trump showing renderings of what this new space may look like, and take a look. It's almost bigger than The White House itself. A Trump administration official acknowledged the process is fluid, and said the demolition is part of plans for the East Wing to be quote: “modernized and rebuilt.” But critics say the administration is tearing down history. It's where we begin tonight with Gabe Gutierrez at The White House.
GABE GUTIERREZ: Tonight, NBC News learning the entire East Wing of The White House will be demolished within days according to two Trump administration officials, as the president building a new 90,000 square foot ballroom paid for by himself and private donors. Among them, Comcast, NBC's parent company.
DONALD TRUMP: This is a plan- if it's got tables, so that you honor a foreign leader, we have a proper space. (VIDEO SWIPE) This is an interior shot of the ballroom. I think there will be nothing like it.
GUTIERREZ: Late today, the president showing off renderings of the massive structure, which he says is now expected to cost $300 million.
TRUMP: Over the years, many presidents have made changes. This, obviously, would be the biggest change. But- this was something they've wanted for at least 150 years.
GUTIERREZ: But tonight, The White House is facing backlash. The National Trust for Historic Preservation, a non-profit created by Congress to help preserve historic buildings, sent the letter to administration officials warning the planned ballroom will overwhelm The White House itself, which is only about 55,000 square feet. Despite the president promising this in July --
TRUMP: It won't interfere with the current building. It won’t be. It will be near it but not touching it.
GUTIERREZ: A White House official now says the scope and the size of the ballroom project has been subject to vary as the process develops. Democrats are blasting the plan.
DICK BLUMENTHAL: It's his personal whim and it is sort of emblematic of the authoritarian, tyrannical approach that this president takes to power.
LLAMAS: All right. Gabe joins us live from The White House. And Gabe, I know you've asked to see what’s happening at the East Wing. What do they tell you?
GUTIERREZ: Yes, we have, Tom. A senior White House official tells me the administration expects to take reporters to the site at some point soon, once demolition is complete. Meanwhile the Treasury Department, which is next door, has told its staff not to share photos of the East Wing because they could reveal sensitive items. Tom.
LLAMAS: All right. Gabe Gutierrez leading us off.
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