President Donald Trump dramatically shifted focus during a high-stakes meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, using the occasion to boast about his new $400 million White House ballroom and launch a fresh attack on the Federal Reserve chairman.
From Geopolitics to Personal Grievances
The press conference at Mar-a-Lago, intended to cover Middle East security following a meeting with Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky the previous day, quickly veered off course. Trump abruptly turned his fire on Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, whom he appointed in 2017 but has frequently criticised.
"We have a fool at the Federal Reserve," Trump declared, incorrectly blaming President Joe Biden for Powell's reappointment. He lambasted the cost of renovating the Fed's Washington headquarters, claiming it had reached "$4.1 billion to do a renovation of a few very small buildings."
This figure vastly exceeds the highest independent estimates, which place the project cost closer to $2.5 billion. The central bank has defended the renovation, noting its premises have not had a major upgrade since the 1930s. Trump threatened a "gross incompetence lawsuit" against Powell over the expenditure.
The Ballroom and a Bold Claim for 2029
Trump then pivoted to promoting his own construction project: the controversial new White House ballroom. The project required the demolition of the East Wing and, unlike the Fed renovation, did not undergo a public review process.
"I'm doing a magnificent, big, beautiful ballroom that the country has wanted, the White House has wanted for 150 years," he said, claiming it was "under budget and ahead of schedule."
He then revealed a significant new detail, stating the space was now designed to host a future presidential inauguration. "After realizing we're going to do the inauguration in that building... It's got all bulletproof glass. It's got all drone, they call it drone-free roof," Trump explained, implying the next inauguration in January 2029 would be held within its walls.
Hot Mic Reveals Nobel Prize Frustration
Elsewhere during the meeting, Trump was caught on a live microphone expressing frustration to Netanyahu about his perceived lack of credit for brokering peace deals. "Do I get credit for it? No," he was heard complaining. "They gave the Nob... I did eight of them. How about India and Pakistan?"
This private grievance underscores Trump's public desire to be seen as a peacemaker, a ambition seemingly frustrated by the lack of definitive announcements from his summits on Ukraine and Gaza. This push for a legacy of peace continues despite recent US military actions in Venezuela and a Christmas Day missile strike in Nigeria.
The White House has not provided further details on the plan to hold an inauguration in the new ballroom, a departure from the traditional ceremony on the Capitol steps.
