A White House official said the East Wing was being "modernized" from its 1902 and 1942 constructions to support the ballroom project and the future home of the East Wing. The scope and size of the project, the official said, has always been subject to change as the process developed.

The White House began demolishing the East Wing Monday for Trump’s $250 million ballroom without approval from the federal commission overseeing such projects.

A dinner for potential donors held at the White House on 15 October included senior executives from prominent US companies including Blackstone, OpenAI, Microsoft, Coinbase, Palantir, Lockheed Martin,...