President Trump lamented that Congress is “becoming antisemitic” during a Hanukkah celebration Tuesday night and seemingly let slip that the White House ballroom might now cost $400 million — double its original price tag — while vowing to make it “impenetrable” except to a howitzer.
Trump used most of his speech at the White House Hanukkah reception to crow about his achievements for Israel, but grew somber at one point to warn attendees that the Jewish state’s clout in the US is declining.
“I will always be a friend and a champion to the Jewish people,” he said. “If you go back 10, 12, 15 years ago, at the most, the strongest lobby in Washington was the Jewish Lobby. It was Israel. That’s no longer true.”
“You have to be very careful. You have a Congress in particular, which is becoming antisemitic. You have AOC plus three; you have those people. Ilhan Omar, she hates Jewish people. And you have to be very careful, because there’s been a big change,” Trump claimed.
The Post reached out to Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-Minn.) office for comment.
The room was largely filled with Republican loyalists, though there were a few liberals, such as Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.), in attendance.
“You have a lot of people in Congress that don’t like Israel,” Trump added. “They hate Israel … and obviously it’s getting progressively worse, less so in the Senate, but the Senate is starting also. You get glimmers when I’m in the back rooms talking to people.”
The president also voiced his dismay at people who downplay the horrors of Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, massacre. He also denounced the deadly attack against a Jewish celebration in Bondi Beach, Australia, over the weekend.
“Please be vigilant and careful,” he pleaded.
During the wide-ranging speech, Trump bounced around various topics in his typical style, at one point riffing about the White House ballroom.
“A $400 million [ballroom],” he added. “It’ll be the most beautiful ballroom, and it’ll handle inaugurations. It’s got five-inch-thick glass windows. Impenetrable by anything but a howitzer. It’s impenetrable.”
“Now I will say, if I’m up making the speech some day and I hear ding, ding, ding, I’m out of there,” he added. “I think it’ll be the greatest ballroom anywhere in the world.”
Earlier in the day, a federal judge rejected a bid from preservationists for a temporary restraining order to block construction of the ballroom.
“But I said, ‘Who else but in our country would sue to stop a $400 million beautiful ballroom?’” Trump said.
When the White House first unveiled the ritzy ballroom design over the summer, it gave an initial $200 million estimate for the price tag.
That estimate was then increased to $300 million. Tuesday appears to be the first time in which Trump publicly jacked the price tag up further to $400 million.
During his wide-ranging speech, Trump noted that, unlike his other remarks to White House holiday gatherings, he made sure to rely on notes so that he could tout all the achievements he’s had with Israel.
But his notes didn’t stop him from going off-script and ad-libbing jokes.
“You know, when you fall, it’s not good for politics,” he mused at one point, before alluding to former President Joe Biden. “We had a man that fell a lot. I don’t want to talk too much, because I’ll have my day I’m sure.”
“They’re waiting, the press,” he continued. “Oh, would they like to see Trump trip off the stage. I would never live it down.”
