Democrats Move to Block $1 Billion White House Security Funding in Senate Bill

Senate Republicans returning to Washington are facing questions about a $1 billion security proposal that could help pay for enhancements related to President Donald Trump’s ballroom project as Democrats say they will try to defeat it. The money for White House security was added to a spending bill that would restore funding for immigration enforcement agencies that Democrats have blocked since February.

Republicans are using a partisan budget maneuver to push the spending legislation through Congress without any Democratic votes. In a letter to colleagues, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said Democrats will fight it in other ways. These include pushing the Senate parliamentarian to strike the ballroom security money from the budget bill and offering amendments forcing Republicans to vote on it.

“The Republican-controlled Congress is preparing to answer this moment with a deficit-busting, party-line bill that pours billions more taxpayer dollars into a rogue ICE operation and a billion-dollar ballroom, while doing nothing to end the illegal war in Iran or ease the Republican affordability crisis bearing down on working families,” Schumer wrote in the letter.

It is unclear if the security money will have enough backing among Republicans. The House has not released its bill yet, but the Senate is expected to start voting on its version of the legislation this week. While most GOP lawmakers have remained quiet on the proposal, some have publicly questioned whether they would support it.

“I’m going to look at it very carefully and make sure those things are in the national interest,” said Rep. Rob Wittman, a Virginia Republican. Wittman said he wants to know the exact nature of the expenditures and how the proposal fits into the total construction cost.

Trump has said the ballroom’s construction would cost $400 million and use private funds, but he had not proposed a number for security costs.

The Senate bill would designate the money for the U.S.

Secret Service, including for security adjustments and upgrades related to the ballroom project. The legislation says the money would support enhancements to the ballroom project, including above-ground and below-ground security features, but specifies it may not be used for non-security elements.

The proposal was put forward after a man was charged with trying to assassinate Trump at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner last month. The White House has said in court documents that the East Wing project would be heavily fortified, including bomb shelters, military installations and a medical facility underneath the ballroom.

Trump has said it should include bulletproof glass and be able to repel drone attacks. The National Trust for Historic Preservation has sued to block construction of the project, but a federal appeals court said last month that it can continue in the meantime.