Senate referee rules against some Trump ballroom funding, Democrats say

By Lauren Fox, Sarah Ferris, Annie Grayer, CNN

(CNN) — The push to secure federal dollars for President Donald Trump’s ballroom security just got more difficult on Capitol Hill.

Senate Democrats said Saturday the provision that funds Trump’s ballroom in the GOP’s latest budget bill has been deemed out of order by the Senate parliamentarian, a major blow to the president’s priority.

A GOP leadership aide cautioned the process is ongoing and that Republicans are continuing to refine the provision to find a way that it can be included.

But the ruling is still a major turn in the future of Trump’s ballroom renovation project.

Top Republicans were already privately skeptical they’d have the votes for Trump’s ballroom push — which the White House has said would put money strictly toward security for the East Wing project and separate US Secret Service needs — at such an economically turbulent time for many Americans, according to multiple GOP leadership sources.

Saturday’s news forces Republican party leaders to go back to the drawing board to get the money through Congress without Democratic votes.

The ballroom funding totals about $220 million, according to a memo sent from the White House to members of Congress this week, but comes as part of a $1 billion security funding request.

Republicans, led by Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, had sought to include the funds in a package of immigration money that would be able to skirt the Senate’s 60-vote threshold as long as it follows a series of process rules. But Democrats say the Senate’s rules referee, parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough, informed lawmakers Saturday that the ballroom money does not, in fact, comply with those special rules.

Before the latest ruling, McDonough had already determined that a few other provisions would need to be altered in the broader package.

Even if GOP leaders can manage to successfully rewrite the ballroom-related language in compliance with Senate’s rules, it may be stripped out anyway.

There’s widespread consternation about the optics of the money for the East Wing project — even if it’s just for security — despite a fierce White House lobbying campaign. That sales pitch included a full briefing by the Secret Service chief to Senate Republicans, a briefing by the homeland security secretary to a large group of House Republicans, a briefing by acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and even some private meetings at the White House with lawmakers.

Part of the administration’s pitch was to clarify for lawmakers that only a fraction of the up to $1 billion would be used specifically on the ballroom, while the rest would be used by the Secret Service for other matters, according to two sources in the meetings.

But even with the full-court press, there are still plenty of Republicans who are skeptical about its price tag in an election year.

GOP Rep. Michael McCaul of Texas told CNN there has been “very vigorous debate” among House Republicans about whether to support money for Trump’s ballroom even though most agree with security funding.

“If you’re in a politically challenging district, that’s not an easy vote to take. I’m not running again so it doesn’t matter to me. … It’s hard to justify a billion dollars. Just the optics of a billion dollars for a ballroom,” McCaul, who has discussed the ballroom with Trump, told CNN.

GOP Rep. Rich McCormick of Georgia said he wished the administration had realized this funding was needed sooner.

“I think they miscalculated, obviously. Typical of a lot of things we do in the government, where you kind of start down a track, and it’s unfortunate, but what are you going to do? You can’t leave the White House unfinished,” he said.

But he argued that even with the war in Iran, record deficit spending and the high cost of living, approving this funding wouldn’t hurt Republicans politically in November. “It’s not the thing that people are going to focus on in the next election,” he told CNN.

Given the political calculations however, one Republican lawmaker, granted anonymity to speak freely, characterized the funding for Trump’s ballroom as “somewhere between dead and on life support.”

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