{"id":72822,"date":"2026-04-29T14:55:53","date_gmt":"2026-04-29T19:55:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/29\/shark-tank-star-backs-trumps-white-house-ballroom-plan-amid-security-concerns-its-bipartisan\/"},"modified":"2026-04-29T14:55:53","modified_gmt":"2026-04-29T19:55:53","slug":"shark-tank-star-backs-trumps-white-house-ballroom-plan-amid-security-concerns-its-bipartisan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/29\/shark-tank-star-backs-trumps-white-house-ballroom-plan-amid-security-concerns-its-bipartisan\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Shark Tank’ star backs Trump’s White House ballroom plan amid security concerns: \u2018It\u2019s bipartisan\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

“Shark Tank” star and investor Kevin O\u2019Leary backed President Donald Trump<\/a>\u2019s push for a White House ballroom as a way to showcase the “American Dream” and serve future administrations of both parties, days after the White House Correspondents\u2019 Dinner shooting.<\/p>\n

“I don’t think the ballroom’s a partisan issue, it’s bipartisan because one day there’ll be a Democratic president that’ll use the ballroom,” O\u2019Leary told Fox News Digital.<\/p>\n

The comments come as congressional Republicans push to approve the ballroom following the shooting at the Washington Hilton ballroom during the annual event attended by hundreds of journalists and Cabinet<\/a> officials. Lawmakers believe this would offer a secure venue for future events.<\/p>\n

O\u2019Leary argued the project, opposed by many Democrats, would also elevate the “American brand” on the world stage.<\/p>\n

REPUBLICANS EYE PICKING UP $400M TAB FOR TRUMP’S BALLROOM AS SOME DEMS OPEN TO ‘DISCUSS’ IDEA<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

“I want the ballroom because I believe in pomp and circumstance, the American brand,” he added.<\/p>\n

He said the nation\u2019s image is more than just the economy.<\/p>\n

“People think it’s exporting technology or exporting energy,” he said. “It’s not. It’s the American Dream and so you want to showcase that.”<\/p>\n

He added the ballroom would bring this image to life.<\/p>\n

“Let’s get that ballroom fired up and show the world the American Dream,” he said. “That’s what it is.”<\/p>\n

He noted the project would not rely on taxpayer dollars. President Trump said the project would be privately financed through personal contributions and outside donors.<\/p>\n

WALZ REPEATS DEBUNKED CLAIM THAT TRUMP CONSIDERS WHITE HOUSE BALLROOM ‘TOP PRIORITY’<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

“My lobbyist over here said the taxpayers are not paying for it,” he said. “So then why not let them have a ballroom? I don’t get it.”<\/p>\n

However, Sens. Lindsey Graham<\/a>, R-S.C., Katie Britt, R-Ala., and Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., proposed new legislation this week that would fund the project using customs fees on imports to cover the cost.<\/p>\n

A lawsuit and court-ordered injunction halted construction of the 90,000-square-foot, $400 million ballroom. A federal court ruled in March that construction must stop without congressional approval, but an appeal allowed limited below-ground construction to continue.<\/p>\n

O\u2019Leary addressed Saturday\u2019s shooting, saying it unfolded “at a moment\u2019s notice.”<\/p>\n

“No one was hurt, thank goodness,” he said. “I think there’ll be a lot of investigations on that stuff.”<\/p>\n

The suspect was identified as Cole Allen, 31, of Torrance, Calif. He is facing charges of attempting to assassinate the President of the United States, transporting a firearm across state lines and discharging a firearm during a crime<\/a> of violence.<\/p>\n

STEPHEN A SMITH TELLS POLITICIANS, MEDIA TO STOP GIVING ‘LIP SERVICE’ ON CIVILITY AFTER WHCA DINNER SHOOTING<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Authorities said the suspect sent a manifesto to family members outlining his intent to target President Trump and other Cabinet officials.<\/p>\n

President Trump said at a news conference Saturday night the shooting reinforces the need for a White House ballroom.<\/p>\n

“We need the ballroom,” he said. “That’s why the Secret Service, that’s why the military<\/a> are demanding it. They’ve wanted the ballroom for 150 years for lots of different reasons. But today is a little bit different, because today we need levels of security that probably nobody’s ever seen before.”<\/p>\n

O\u2019Leary expressed doubts about the future of the White House Correspondents\u2019 Dinner and raised concerns about securing large-scale events.<\/p>\n

“I also wonder about long-term if that dinner’s going to survive, because providing the security for 2,600 people is next to impossible,” he said.<\/p>\n

Fox News Digital\u2019s Adam Pack and Alex Miller contributed to this report.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“Shark Tank” star and investor Kevin O\u2019Leary backed President Donald Trump\u2019s push for a White House ballroom as a way to showcase the “American Dream” and serve future administrations of both parties, days after the White House Correspondents\u2019 Dinner shooting. “I don’t think the ballroom’s a partisan issue, it’s bipartisan because one day there’ll be … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-72822","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72822","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=72822"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72822\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=72822"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=72822"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=72822"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}