Reported no-bid contract pushes White House ballroom controversy to a new level

Those looking for a simple phrase to help summarize Donald Trump’s second term could do worse than “no-bid contract.” Indeed, it has been difficult to keep up on all of the assorted projects championed by the president that have bypassed the normal bidding process the federal government has relied on for many years.

Reflecting Pool renovations? No-bid contract. Applying gold-toned coating to horse statues by the Lincoln Memorial? No-bid contract. Repairing ornamental fountains in Lafayette Park? No-bid contract.

And then, of course, there’s Trump’s beloved White House ballroom project, which is the subject of a striking new report from The Washington Post.

White House officials last year secretly awarded a no-bid contract worth up to $500 million for the construction of the East Wing ballroom in an unusual arrangement that sidestepped typical contracting procedures designed to control costs, according to a copy of the agreement obtained by The Washington Post.

The confidential contract went to Maryland-based Clark Construction, the same company Trump also awarded a no-bid contract to for the Lafayette Park project.

According to the Post’s report, which has not been independently verified by MS NOW, the president was “directly involved” in negotiating some details of the project.

The White House budget has long included funds for Office of the Executive Residence, which covers spending on things such as furniture and routine repairs. According to the documents obtained by the Post, Team Trump routed a massive no-bid contract for the president’s ballroom through this office, which is “exempt from rules that require federal agencies to solicit competitive bids and disclose details to the public.”

The White House made no effort to deny any of this. On the contrary, a spokesperson claimed the contract was issued through the Executive Residence because that office “will be the primary support of the facility.”

So let’s take stock. Trump destroyed the East Wing after saying he wouldn’t. He said the ballroom would cost $200 million and taxpayers wouldn’t have to pay a dime, only to have the price tag balloon, with evidence showing taxpayers on the hook for more than half the project’s costs.

It’s against this backdrop that the Post reported that Trump also personally helped negotiate the terms of a no-bid contract for a business he likes, running it through an office that allowed him to circumvent competitive contract rules.

In case this isn’t obvious, The New Republic recently summarized, “The lack of a bidding process means that the government, and by extension, taxpayers, could easily be overcharged by contractors, and the rushed projects mean that the work could be shoddy and cause permanent damage to important landmarks in the nation’s capital.”

Last week, Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the top Democrat on the Appropriations Committee, and Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut, the top Democrat on the Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, called on the Government Accountability Office to investigate the funding surrounding the ballroom project. Watch this space.

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