Senator John Fetterman, a Pennsylvania Democrat, issued a striking rebuke of his own party on Monday, telling the Daily Mail exclusively that Democrats need to 'drop the TDS' and back President Trump's proposed White House ballroom. His reprimand follows a shooting incident at the White House Correspondents' Dinner on Saturday, which Fetterman attended.
'The leader of the Democratic party is TDS,' Fetterman said, referring to so-called 'Trump Derangement Syndrome,' a term coined by Trump supporters to describe what they perceive as irrational and obsessive opposition to President Trump. 'Our nation needs and deserves this [ballroom],' he argued.
House Speaker Mike Johnson echoed Fetterman's sentiment, praising the senator and calling for unity in the wake of the attack during a media segment on Monday. 'After witnessing last night, drop the TDS and build the White House ballroom for events exactly like these,' Fetterman advocated.
The White House Correspondents' Dinner is an annual Washington, D.C., event organized by the White House Correspondents' Association, not by the White House itself. The dinner has grown to over 2,600 attendees in the more than 100 years since its first event in 1921. Moving the dinner to a venue other than the Hilton would require approval from the Association and is not a decision made solely by the White House.
Background on the White House Ballroom Project
President Trump's proposed $400 million White House ballroom project was temporarily halted at the start of April by a federal judge. The National Trust for Historic Preservation sued the Trump administration following the destruction of the White House's East Wing last autumn, arguing that Trump required Congressional approval before making such sweeping changes to the building.
Trump told NBC in a 2025 interview that the new ballroom, currently under construction, would have a capacity for approximately 900 guests. A document from the National Capital Planning Commission presented in March of this year notes that the approximately 22,000 square-foot ballroom 'is designed to accommodate approximately a thousand seated guests at a formal dinner.'
Speaking with the Daily Mail on Monday, Fetterman added, 'We just need to put our respective biases away, and for me this, this is before the country's interest not even the party's interest,' he said of the ballroom. 'Trump won't even be President to use the facility,' he noted, referencing current projected construction timelines, before adding that 'it's about the facility that will be used for countless presidents after that.'
Fetterman's Record and Security Concerns
Fetterman also noted that he has voted multiple times to fund the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees the Secret Service. The House has passed a comprehensive DHS funding package, but the Senate has repeatedly failed to follow suit despite Republican efforts. The bill requires a 60-vote threshold to pass. Fetterman also joined New Mexico's Martin Heinrich in crossing party lines to back the nomination of DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin, confirmed 54-45 in March.
On the wider security failings laid bare on Saturday night, Fetterman told the Daily Mail: 'Imagine if it was Iran, imagine if this was some organization with some resources,' rather than the seemingly lone gunman who struck that evening.
The Shooting Incident
Cole Tomas Allen, 31, a teacher from Torrance, California, was caught on camera attempting to bolt past a security checkpoint armed with a shotgun, a handgun, and several knives. He exchanged fire with Secret Service agents before being tackled and arrested. One agent was struck in his bulletproof vest and is expected to recover. Nobody else was hurt.
The White House Correspondents' Dinner, the annual black-tie gala uniting politicians and journalists, had barely begun when shots rang out and the Secret Service sprang into action. Trump later released surveillance footage showing Allen, dressed in black, sprinting through the hotel gun in hand before being rushed by armed guards.
Journalists inside the room photographed top administration officials being hurried to safety. Video showed Vice President JD Vance being frantically escorted off stage, while Trump and Melania ducked for cover before agents pulled the President away. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his wife Cheryl Hines were pictured running in a crouch, with Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller and his wife Katie Miller close behind. Speaker Johnson was also briskly escorted out.
Within an hour, Trump addressed reporters at a West Wing briefing. 'It's always shocking when something like this happens,' he said. 'I heard a noise and kinda thought it was a tray going down.' He added that Melania had immediately recognised it as a 'bad noise' and that it had been 'a rather traumatic experience for her.' 'Melania was very cognizant,' he said, and shared her fear for his safety given the multiple assassination attempts he has survived.
Federal prosecutors charged Allen with three federal crimes on Monday, including the attempted assassination of the President. He faces up to 20 years on the assault charge; the firearm counts carry a mandatory minimum of ten years and could extend to life imprisonment, depending on whether the weapon was discharged and the severity of the underlying offence.
