Donald Trump has secretly planned new White House construction. The President tore down the historic East Wing to build a $400 million ballroom for state visits. Now CNN details lesser-known aspects of the secret construction. It mainly revolves around an underground bunker beneath the new ballroom.
Trump faced backlash after the swift East Wing demolition lacked approval. The impending ballroom, which is set to be built in its place, sits atop a hidden facility underground. It was constructed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt during World War II. With the tearing down of the East Wing above ground, recent reports claim that the bunker has also been demolished.
Donald Trump now wishes to replace the underground facility with something new. This would consist of new technology that will counter any kind of evolving threat, according to the Daily Beast.
Meanwhile, at a recent National Capital Planning Commission meeting, the White House director of management and administration addressed the matter. Joshua Fisher claimed that the ballroom project in the premises will “(enhance) mission critical functionality, make necessary security enhancements and (deliver) resilient, adaptive infrastructure aligned with future mission needs.”
When asked why the ballroom proposal didn’t go to the National Capital Planning Commission before demolition began, a White House official claims “there are some things guarding this project, that are, frankly, of top secret nature” pic.twitter.com/nWi8ImEW19
— FactPost (@factpostnews) January 8, 2026
Experts have already speculated a range of upgrades that await the particular space. It could be anything ranging from a next-gen bunker tech, cyber-defense, advanced threat detection, or even countermeasures for EMPs, hypersonic weapons, and drone swarms.
Fisher was questioned about why Trump did not seek prior approval from the commission before demolishing the East Wing. It brought up the alleged sensitive nature of the project. In his words, “There are some things regarding this project that are, frankly, of top-secret nature that we are currently working on. That does not preclude us from changing the above-grade structure, but that work needed to be considered when doing this project, which was not part of the NCPC process.”
One may remember that this particular underground facility in question previously housed the Presidential Emergency Operations Center, which was used during the infamous September 11 attacks. Additionally, Trump himself used it in May 2020 at the time of the George Floyd protests.
“CNN has just confirmed that the classified East Wing bunker – where Trump intends to permanently reside – will have a fully rebuilt command center and entire living quarters. He’s building Bunker-a-Lago at taxpayer expense.”
Permanently reside? 🤔https://t.co/cKpQqcM6EG
— Helen121 🕷💙🇪🇺🐈⬛ (@Helen121) January 20, 2026
Trump did not anticipate the leak of information regarding his use of the secret White House bunker. In fact, he’s pretty angry with those responsible for the leak and has demanded that his officials find and prosecute them.
Wall Street Journal reporter Michael Bender wrote in his 2020 book that “Trump boiled over about the bunker story as soon as they arrived and shouted at them to smoke out whoever had leaked it. It was the most upset some aides had ever seen the president.”
Coming back to the exquisite ballroom, which is on its way to being built, Trump has envisioned a new two-story building. Besides the ballroom, it will be completed with monumental stairs, guest suites and a discreet passageway connecting the segment to the main residence.
