Apple Donating to Trump's $350M White House Ballroom Project

[JoeG4]

I've never seen so much pessimism until coming here. This site really has gone down the drain. Oh well, it had a good run. Enjoy your bickering everybody!

I've been active on macrumors since 2002 as well. I appreciate that MacRumors allows people to discuss political events, and I like to think everyone has a right to their own opinion, but my goodness have I ever been disappointed by some of the opinions expressed around these parts! 😅 It's ok, I see what they're saying, and I'm glad to have exposure to what others think.

(I was honestly disappointed when MR Mods felt the news about Apple's Pride wristbands should be posted in the political discussion space..... but to their credit, they've made a lot of good decisions. Thanks.)

I really have been disappointed about Tim Cook's actions. I'd be happier if Tim Cook was personally making those donations and taking those actions, with a clear disclaimer that Apple wasn't and shouldn't be part of it.

I think the ballroom building should have been its own entity. It's too big to be attached to The White House. The design is clearly compromised because of this; it almost looks like the front 1/3 and the rear 2/3 were two separate designs hastily stuck together.

It's still not too late to change course. They could bring in some architectural experts and build a new east wing that was more befitting and respecting of the white house, and build the ballroom as a separate building nearby. They could then go for a flashier design too, not being held back by the constraints of the white house design.

 

[JoeG4]

That had to cost hundreds of millions!

There actually do seem to be people making that claim. Here's a couple of interesting things:

How Much Did Obama's Basketball Court Cost?

Context first. Shortly after taking office in 2009, President Barack Obama did not commission a brand-new gym. He asked that the existing outdoor tennis court

www.thepricer.org

Unraveling claims about $376M White House renovation under Obama

While a large White House renovation project took place during Obama's presidency, some posts omitted key context or shared misleading claims.

www.snopes.com

CNN reported in a Sept. 10, 2010, segment that Congress approved funding for the renovations in 2008 — before Obama took office — "after a Bush administration report revealed some systems in the White House were periodically failing."

You know, one of the interesting things I noticed is those basketball goals are portable units. So the only actual modification was probably painting the lines on the ground lol. I wouldn't be surprised if the lines were added using some kind of easily removable material.

They probably used these: https://www.gillporter.com/porter/1835-competition-portable-backstop-1.html

Those suckers actually cost like a car! ($25k a piece) but they are made in the US, and motorized even.

 

[WinstonSmyth]

That had to cost hundreds of millions!

Did Obama pay for it himself?

 

[WinstonSmyth]

You missed the point. It's a waste of money for the ballroom. The money is better off to help people instead!!

I suppose you could say the same thing about keeping the Washington Monument open, or Washington's house at Mount Vernon, heck it could be used to house migrants. In large picture of a $6.975 trillion dollar budget this doesn't amount to much. So maybe the amount that Apple is donating would amount to $0.01 per person in the USA. 50 years ago that could get you a gum ball, not sure if it will anymore.

 

[JoeG4]

Did Obama pay for it himself?

I don't know. They used some fairly high end portable goals. As I pointed out, I don't think any construction work was done at all to turn the tennis court into a basketball court.

You should know, the lines and portable goals were removed a long time ago, the court was returned to being a tennis court, and this president had a pavillion built in it.

Melania Trump unveils her legacy: A tennis pavilion

Melania Trump on Monday announced the completion of the new White House tennis pavilion - a project she began in 2018 and that will be part of her White House legacy.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[WinstonSmyth]

You missed the point. It's a waste of money for the ballroom. The money is better off to help people instead!!

You could also say the same thing about that very expensive new building that Apple built. Did they really need such a structure? Couldn't they have built the same square footage for much less and used the money to "help people instead"? What the heck are they doing in the giant building anyway? Certainly not coming with much new tech or fixing bugs in the software.

 

[jon9091]

Did Obama pay for it himself

President Obama and Michelle Obama paid for the conversion of the White House tennis court into a basketball court themselves, using private funds rather than taxpayer money. They chose to pay for the project privately and declined to accept public funds or donations for this specific renovation.

 

[dampfnudel]

China is winning the 21st century. This is the root of the matter. The US is declining in every consequential way; and once the mega tech bubble pops….it will extinguish any remaining doubt.

China may be overstretching themselves and overestimating their capabilities. They’re definitely building too much residential infrastructure.

 

[chineseguy38]

You could also say the same thing about that very expensive new building that Apple built. Did they really need such a structure? Couldn't they have built the same square footage for much less and used the money to "help people instead"? What the heck are they doing in the giant building anyway? Certainly not coming with much new tech or fixing bugs in the software.

That's your opinion. Yes Apple shouldn't use so much money to build new building as well. Instead of so greedy about profit margin. They shouldn't waste money unnecessarily.

 

[benji888]

IDK if anyone will hear this, but, there will be no ballroom. He's grifting for legal defense. You will see this soon. That is all.

 

[johnnytravels]

It's been a request since Benjamin Harrison in 1892ish - and with the advent of modern air travel, the WH has been badly equipped for large state events. They do their best to decorate the pavilion tents but it's a bit...yeah. Long overdue.

Also worth remembering *many* of the changes to the White House over the years have been controversial. Hardly anyone brings up Truman ruining the design with the second floor balcony anymore but it caused a huge stir when it was first announced.

Well I think it has to do with the fact that the Trump era will soon be our third reich and we will need to tear it down again as a monument to fascism, so at the very least this is just money wasted...

 

[burgman]

You could also say the same thing about that very expensive new building that Apple built. Did they really need such a structure? Couldn't they have built the same square footage for much less and used the money to "help people instead"? What the heck are they doing in the giant building anyway? Certainly not coming with much new tech or fixing bugs in the software.

Any other straw man distractions you wish to share? The requirement to buy access and favor or be punished is the authoritarian playbook page one. Find and watch the live microphone moment video at peace deal conference in Egypt where Indonesia PM asked Trump to have Eric or Don Jr call him and say he's such a good boy. Then explain George Santos commutation and Zhao Binance pardon. Trump making billions in Crypto based in Middle East, just coincidence. Plus so much more grifting.

 

[stevet]

Absolutely disgusting

This turns me off from Apple so much.

Better than when Obama used tax payers money to put a basketball court in the underground part of the White House.

You guys seem to have short memories when it comes to politics. Good thing you won’t have to worry about a democrat being president for the next 12-16 years.

 

[dblissmn]

It was all privately funded so it’s not costing the tax payer a dime.

If you believe that you'll believe anything. Follow the money. Follow the influence.

 

[ratspg]

Well I think it has to do with the fact that the Trump era will soon be our third reich and we will need to tear it down again as a monument to fascism, so at the very least this is just money wasted...

To call something “our third reich” is disrespectful. As someone who has had relatives survive Nazi Germany and the Holocaust I think it’s very disturbing to throw terms like that around.

 

[rhinosrcool]

To call something “our third reich” is disrespectful. As someone who has had relatives survive Nazi Germany and the Holocaust I think it’s very disturbing to throw terms like that around.

Trump is very disturbing. He's a racist and an-ill informed idiot.

 

[Madhatter32]

To call something “our third reich” is disrespectful. As someone who has had relatives survive Nazi Germany and the Holocaust I think it’s very disturbing to throw terms like that around.

Agree that people on the left causually throw around such terms without any understanding of historical meaning or context. Unfortunately, I believe it goes much deeper than just ignorance and hyoerbole -- underscoring the ugly reality that many on left just do not care about its significant anti-Semitism problem.

 

[Tar Sniffer]

If you believe that you'll believe anything. Follow the money. Follow the influence.

You know that I was talking specifically about the construction cost. What I stated was a fact.

 

[OverTheHill]

Well I think it has to do with the fact that the Trump era will soon be our third reich and we will need to tear it down again as a monument to fascism, so at the very least this is just money wasted...

When people post things like this, it’s hard to take them seriously on any level.

 

[Tubamajuba]

When people post things like this, it’s hard to take them seriously on any level.

When people attempt to downplay the destruction that Trump is unleashing on this country, it’s hard to take them seriously on any level.

 

[ratspg]

Trump is very disturbing. He's a racist and an-ill informed idiot.

He didn’t put millions in gas chambers. People that I knew, so I find the Nazi references very distasteful and unkind.

 

[rhinosrcool]

He didn’t put millions in gas chambers. People that I knew, so I find the Nazi references very distasteful and unkind.

Please, he has ICE rounding up innocent people because of their skin color and sending to who knows where? It's incredible to me that you can be very familiar with the holocaust and still support this piece of ****. History will not be kind to Trump and MAGA.

 

[Madhatter32]

Please, he has ICE rounding up innocent people because of their skin color and sending to who knows where? It's incredible to me that you can be very familiar with the holocaust and still support this piece of ****. History will not be kind to Trump and MAGA.

^^ "Skin color" ... yet another victim of left wing propaganda and reality distortion. ^^

 

[ratspg]

Please, he has ICE rounding up innocent people because of their skin color and sending to who knows where? It's incredible to me that you can be very familiar with the holocaust and still support this piece of ****. History will not be kind to Trump and MAGA.

Ok? Sigh.

 

[theorist9]

Also worth remembering *many* of the changes to the White House over the years have been controversial. Hardly anyone brings up Truman ruining the design with the second floor balcony anymore but it caused a huge stir when it was first announced.

Not even close to being comparable.

First, the renovations under Truman's administration were structurally necessary. A report by the Commissioner of Public Buildings stated the 2nd floor of the mansion was in danger of "imminent collapse". See:

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en.wikipedia.org

Second, Congress was consulted and Congressional approval was obtained. Trump just acted by fiat, like it was his house, not the people's house that is loaned out to him. Further, Trump himself knows he's acting out of bounds even by his standards, which is why he lied about leaving the East Wing alone, and then just went ahead and tore it down. That's night-and-day different not only from how Truman operated, but from how any responsible POTUS woud operate.

Third, under Truman, there was a detailed cataloging of everything within the parts that had to be torn down, and as much as possible of historical significance was preserved. There's no indication Trump did any of that for the East Wing. I recall a commenter on another forum saying 'Imagine how nice it would have been to distribute pieces of historical significance to state capitols so they could display a piece of White House history.'

Fourth, there's huge difference in scale vs. what Truman did. You're complaining about a single balcony, while Trump's ballroom has nearly twice the footprint of the main section of the WH.