White House 65% Ballroom Claim Collides With Records Showing 24% to 33% Progress
Updated
Updated · The Washington Post · Aug 28
White House 65% Ballroom Claim Collides With Records Showing 24% to 33% Progress
3 articles · Updated · The Washington Post · Aug 28
Summary
$144 million in approved spending and the administration’s own $600 million cost estimate indicate the White House East Wing project was only about 24% complete by end-July, not 65% as told to the Supreme Court.
Even using the administration’s separate claim that it had already spent about $200 million, the work would be roughly 33% complete under the contractor agreement tying payment to percentage of work finished.
A second yardstick also undercuts the sworn claim: Joshua Fisher’s timeline puts construction 10 months into a 34-month schedule, or about 30% complete, while experts said dollars spent is the standard measure.
The 65% figure was central to the administration’s bid to keep building after lower courts said the project likely needed congressional approval, but the White House declined to explain its calculation and internal design changes are still ongoing.