Trump brags about the White House ballroom in his first post-election appearance

Trump answers questions from reporters after Republican midterm losses06:47Get more newsonShareAdd NBC News to GoogleNov. 4, 2026, 1:36 PM ESTBy Rebecca ShabadIn his first public appearance since Republicans racked up major losses in the midterm elections, President Donald Trump boasted Wednesday about the White House ballroom under construction and largely skirted talk about his party’s performance.

“This is a special structure. It’s going to be not only one of the biggest, but it’ll be the most beautiful ballroom, I think, anywhere in the world, and they’ve been trying to get it for 150 years,” Trump told construction workers at the ballroom site on the White House grounds, where the East Room previously stood.

“This will be something very special. And so we’re putting up the last piece of steel. I thought it would be appropriate to have the media here,” he added, hinting that the ballroom’s “official opening” would be in the near future.

The president’s only remarks on the election results — which saw Democrats regain control of both houses of Congress, notching wins in longtime GOP strongholds like Texas — came in response to questions from press after his remarks.

When asked to weigh in on the race to pick a new House Republican leader in light of Speaker Mike Johnson’s decision not to run again, Trump said, “We’ll stay out of it.” He said he did not ask Johnson to step down.

Asked for comment on Vice President JD Vance’s statement that Republicans lost the election because of the war on Iran, Trump said, “I think it’s largely true because it drove the gasoline up a little bit short-term.” He added: “At the same time, if I had it to do again, I’d have to do it again because long term it’s the only answer. You can’t let Iran have a nuclear weapon.”

The president signed a steel beam destined for the ballroom project, adorned with two gold presidential seals, and addressed criticism that he is too focused on White House renovations.

FOR SUBSCRIBERSIran says Americans rejected Trump’s war as the world reacts to the midterms rout FOR SUBSCRIBERSVoters rejected Trump’s ‘booming’ economy narrative and the AI that underpins it FOR SUBSCRIBERS‘No one is going to outwork Hakeem’: Jeffries’ rise to the cusp of history has been rapidFOR SUBSCRIBERSAI chatbots cited dozens of spoofed campaign websites before midterm elections, researchers sayFOR SUBSCRIBERSWhy Devin Booker is unlike almost any superstar in the NBAFOR SUBSCRIBERSThe Data Dive: Steve Kornacki charts where Democrats sliced into GOP strongholdsFOR SUBSCRIBERSWhat Democrats plan to do with House majority: Investigate Trump and tackle affordabilityFOR SUBSCRIBERSElection takeaways: The Trump coalition implodes. What comes next?FOR SUBSCRIBERS‘Everything is going to change’: Republicans begin grappling with how they lost so badly FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe battlegrounds our journalists are reporting fromFOR SUBSCRIBERSThe midterms are over, and Trump is over the midtermsFOR SUBSCRIBERSWhat is rhabdo? Rare muscle condition linked to marathon runner’s deathFOR SUBSCRIBERSDOJ is deploying a record number of monitors on Election Day FOR SUBSCRIBERSHow to watch election night: Key races, poll closing times, bellwether campaigns and moreFOR SUBSCRIBERSThe Data Dive: Steve Kornacki’s guide to early election night bellwethersSlide 1 of 1“I’m doing it because the White House is the ultimate symbol of America and it’s got to be pristine — it’s got to be perfect,” he said. “And if you take a look at it, that’s what it is right now. You have no idea how much work we had to do.”

FOR SUBSCRIBERSIran says Americans rejected Trump’s war as the world reacts to the midterms rout FOR SUBSCRIBERSVoters rejected Trump’s ‘booming’ economy narrative and the AI that underpins it FOR SUBSCRIBERS‘No one is going to outwork Hakeem’: Jeffries’ rise to the cusp of history has been rapidFOR SUBSCRIBERSAI chatbots cited dozens of spoofed campaign websites before midterm elections, researchers sayFOR SUBSCRIBERSWhy Devin Booker is unlike almost any superstar in the NBAFOR SUBSCRIBERSThe Data Dive: Steve Kornacki charts where Democrats sliced into GOP strongholdsFOR SUBSCRIBERSWhat Democrats plan to do with House majority: Investigate Trump and tackle affordabilityFOR SUBSCRIBERSElection takeaways: The Trump coalition implodes. What comes next?FOR SUBSCRIBERS‘Everything is going to change’: Republicans begin grappling with how they lost so badly FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe battlegrounds our journalists are reporting fromFOR SUBSCRIBERSThe midterms are over, and Trump is over the midtermsFOR SUBSCRIBERSWhat is rhabdo? Rare muscle condition linked to marathon runner’s deathFOR SUBSCRIBERSDOJ is deploying a record number of monitors on Election Day FOR SUBSCRIBERSHow to watch election night: Key races, poll closing times, bellwether campaigns and moreFOR SUBSCRIBERSThe Data Dive: Steve Kornacki’s guide to early election night bellwethersSlide 1 of 1Trump claimed that it was the “the dream of presidents to have a ballroom for 150 years” and bragged about the “most beautiful marble” in the ballroom.

“I got it for the floor of the ballroom at the White House. And it’s going to be beautiful. The walls are going to be very — you’ll see a lot of glass,” he said.

Trump first announced plans for the ballroom in July 2025 and has frequently spoken about it during official White House events on unrelated subjects and at campaign rallies. The project has faced legal obstacles, though the Supreme Court said in late August that construction could proceed indefinitely.

On Monday, Trump had spent most of his final pre-election speech in front of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool touting the renovations he ordered around Washington, D.C., and very little time devoted to the midterms.

Rebecca ShabadRebecca Shabad is a politics reporter for NBC News based in Washington.