Asked about the escalating price tag Thursday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said, “With any construction project, there are changes over time as you assess what the project is going to look like, and we’ll continue to keep you apprised of all of those changes.”
She also said the demolition was in line with legal guidance to the White House, which says it only needs approval for new construction, not demolition.
As for who is paying for what for the new project, Leavitt said, “We have released the full list of donors thus far.”
Comcast Corp., the parent company of NBCUniversal, was included in a list of top donors. It is unclear how much Comcast and other donors have contributed.
Leavitt said the amount Trump has contributed will be made public at some point.
The East Wing, which has typically been used by the first lady and her staff, was built during Franklin D. Roosevelt‘s presidency in 1942 and is part of the broader White House complex.
Leavitt noted that there have been major renovations and additions to the White House over the years, something that’s also reflected in a section on the history of the property on the White House’s website.
The site has recently been updated, with a new section that includes a “major events timeline” that trolls the last three Democratic presidents while recounting various renovation projects. The events listed include what the site calls the “Bill Clinton Scandal” and another dubbed “Cocaine discovered,” featuring an image of Hunter Biden.
A White House official told NBC News on Wednesday that “all the historical components of the East Wing, such as elements from [Rosalynn] Carter’s original Office of the First Lady, have been preserved and stored under the supervision of the White House Executive Residence and the National Park Service with support from the White House Historical Association. Plans are in place for future use.”
