Amazon, Apple, and Google are among the dozens of donors funding President Donald Trump’s ballroom project, according to a list released by the White House.
The president has emphasized that the project is privately funded. Now, the list, obtained by several media outlets, reveals the 37 individuals and companies who have contributed to the new 90,000 square-foot ballroom.
Trump revealed Wednesday that the project will now cost an estimated $300 million and require tearing down the entire East Wing. “In order to do it properly, we had to take down the existing structure,” the president said.
While Americans aren’t paying for it, they are deeply unhappy with Trump’s demolition of the White House’s East Wing, a new poll has found.
More than half of U.S. adults disapprove of the demolition, according to the poll.
Although demolition is well underway, the White House has not sent plans for the ballroom to the National Capital Planning Commission, which oversees construction of federal buildings, Reuters reported.
The president will host a roundtable to discuss his administration’s efforts to combat cartels and human trafficking Thursday afternoon as federal troops are starting to arrive in San Francisco against the wishes of the city’s mayor and California governor.
Dr Oz jumps through hoops – and changes the laws of math – to explain Trump claims about lowering drug prices
Dr Mehmet Oz, administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, got himself into a desperate mathematical tangle attempting to defend President Donald Trump’s rhetoric on drug prices on Wednesday.
Appearing on NBC News’s Meet the Press with Kristen Welker, the former daytime TV personality was invited to watch a montage of Trump making wildly inflated promises on the percentage by which his administration planned to cut the cost of pharmaceuticals, which rose from 1,200 percent to 1,500 percent depending on which press event the president was speaking at.
“Cutting drug prices by 400 percent, anything over 100 percent, wouldn’t that effectively make them free? Is that a realistic goal from the president?” Welker asked Dr Oz.
Joe Sommerlad has the story.
Kelly Rissman23 October 2025 17:00
WATCH: Gambling ring connected to NY mafia used x-ray tables to rig poker games, FBI says
Kelly Rissman23 October 2025 16:50
Who donated to Trump’s $300m ballroom project?
The White House revealed the 37 companies and individuals who donated to his massive golden ballroom project.
Here’s the list of donors, obtained by The Hill:
- Altria Group, Inc.
- Amazon
- Apple
- Booz Allen Hamilton
- Caterpillar, Inc.
- Coinbase
- Comcast Corporation
- J. Pepe and Emilia Fanjul
- Hard Rock International
- HP Inc.
- Lockheed Martin
- Meta Platforms
- Micron Technology
- Microsoft
- NextEra Energy, Inc.
- Palantir Technologies Inc.
- Ripple
- Reynolds American
- T-Mobile
- Tether America
- Union Pacific Railroad
- Adelson Family Foundation
- Stefan E. Brodie
- Betty Wold Johnson Foundation
- Charles and Marissa Cascarilla
- Edward and Shari Glazer
- Harold Hamm
- Benjamin Leon Jr.
- The Lutnick Family
- The Laura & Isaac Perlmutter Foundation
- Stephen A. Schwarzman
- Konstantin Sokolov
- Kelly Loeffler and Jeff Sprecher
- Paolo Tiramani
- Cameron Winklevoss
- Tyler Winklevoss
Kelly Rissman23 October 2025 16:40
Linda McMahon’s attempt to be Trump’s chief of staff was thwarted by orchestrated JD Vance phone call, new book claims
Linda McMahon, the now-secretary of education, and Brooke Rollins, the now-secretary of agriculture, unsuccessfully pitched themselves to serve as President Donald Trump’s White House chief of staff – in part failing because campaign staffers intercepted their efforts with an “orchestrated” call from the vice president, a new book alleges.
During the presidential transition process, McMahon, a former professional wrestling executive, and Rollins, who had set up a conservative think tank, rushed to Mar-a-Lago, where Trump and his team of trusted advisers were helping select members of the new administration, vying for the coveted chief of staff role, according to Jonathan Karl’s new book, Retribution, an excerpt of which was published in Vanity Fair Thursday.
When a campaign staffer who worked closely with Susie Wiles, the so-called “ice maiden” who successfully led Trump’s 2016 and 2024 campaigns, got wind of McMahon and Rollins’ plans, they reportedly intervened.
Ariana Baio has the story.
Kelly Rissman23 October 2025 16:30
Pritzker creates commission to monitor federal immigration activity in Illinois
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker established a board tasked with documenting federal immigration authority activity, following a similar model to New York’s ICE activity portal.
Pritzker announced Thursday that he created the Illinois Accountability Commission, an independent board that would publicly document federal law enforcement and activity recommend actions to hold the federal government accountable.
“The federal government is pushing the boundaries of their authority to terrorize our communities while disregarding all legal and moral accountability in the process. We will not meet intimidation with fear — we will meet it with truth,” Pritzker said in a statement Thursday.
On Wednesday, New York Attorney General Letitia James launched a portal in which residents could submit documentation of ICE activity following the nine arrests in a raid on Manhattan’s Canal Street.
“Every New Yorker has the right to live without fear or intimidation,” James said in a statement.
Kelly Rissman23 October 2025 16:20
In photos:Federal agents arrive in Bay Area for immigration operations
Kelly Rissman23 October 2025 16:10
Death toll in U.S. strikes against alleged drug boats rises to at least 37 after latest hit
Donald Trump’s administration has struck at least two alleged drug-carrying vessels, killing five people on board, in what appears to be the first attacks in the Pacific Ocean.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced two operations Wednesday that bring the death toll from the administration’s attacks to more than 30, as the United States declares itself at war with drug cartels in an expanding military campaign across South America.
A vessel struck down Tuesday “was known by our intelligence to be involved in illicit narcotics smuggling, was transiting along a known narco-trafficking transit route, and carrying narcotics,” according to Hegseth.
Alex Woodward has the story.
Kelly Rissman23 October 2025 16:00
California police could arrest federal authorities who break state law, Pelosi says
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi suggested local police could arrest federal authorities if they break state law.
“While the President may enjoy absolute immunity courtesy of his rogue Supreme Court, those who operate under his orders do not,” Pelosi and Congressman Kevin Mullin said in a statement on Wednesday.
“Our state and local authorities may arrest federal agents if they break California law — and if they are convicted, the President cannot pardon them.”
Trump said on Sunday that San Francisco will be his “next” target to send federal troops.
More than 100 federal immigration agents are heading to the Bay Area and are expected to arrive Thursday, the San Francisco Chronicle reported earlier this week.
Kelly Rissman23 October 2025 15:50
Disaster Relief Fund is at a ‘precarious level,’ according to a report
Federal funding for disaster relief efforts is “critically low,” Bloomberg reported.
The Disaster Relief Fund, provides assistance to the federal government’s domestic general disaster relief programs, has reached around $10 billion, a figure that current and former FEMA staffers described as being at a “precarious level,” the outlet reported.
A report of the fund’s spending level through the end of September showed the agency with roughly $8.4 billion remaining for staff deployment, aid and other efforts tied to presidential major disaster declarations, Bloomberg said.
There was also $1.1 billion set aside to respond to unexpected events, the outlet, which reviewed the report, noted.
The fund had reportedly dropped to just $11 billion last October following devastating hurricanes Helene and Milton.
Although Trump said in June he wanted to “wean off of FEMA” and instead “bring it back to the state level,” he also appointed a council to assess FEMA, which is supposed to provide recommendations by later this year.
Kelly Rissman23 October 2025 15:40
FBI announces sweeping takedown of illegal gambling ring involving La Cosa Nostra mafia crime families, NBA players and coaches
NBA star Terry Rozier and Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncy Billups were both arrested early Thursday as part of sweeping FBI investigations into illegal gambling.
More than 30 people had been arrested in over 11 states in what FBI Director Kash Patel described as “an illegal gambling operation and sports-rigging operation that spanned the course of years.”
“This is an operation that showcases to you that under President Trump’s administration, there is no room for any type of criminal behavior, be in on the world’s largest stage or in the back rooms of tiny parlors where card games were being played,” Patel said at a press conference Thursday.
Follow The Independent’s live coverage here.
Kelly Rissman23 October 2025 15:29
