Evidence suggests Trump knew the White House already had a bunker when he started pushing for one of his own; from there, the story takes on a distinct Nixonian scent

(NPR, Facebook)

When last we wrote about Donald Trump's plans to build a ballroom/military bunker where the East Wing of the White House once stood, we closed with a question that readers of a certain age will recognize as a condensed version of perhaps the most famous quotation to come from the Watergate scandal of the 1970s. Here is our question: Did the Trump administration know a White House bunker already existed when it started unauthorized construction on [what began as its ballroom project]? The famous quote noted above came from U.S. Sen. Howard Baker (R-TN), who asked White House legal counsel John Dean: "What did the president know, and when did he know it?"

The president in question then  was a Republican, Richard Nixon. The president in question now is another Republican, Donald Trump. (Do you see a trend here?) The site of presidential chicanery in the '70s was the Watergate complex; now, the site is the White House. 

As noted at the end of our previous post about the ongoing tempest over Trump's ballroom project -- which since has morphed into a "military installation," then a "military "complex," or simply a "bunker" -- I planned to conduct research about whether the Trump administration knew an underground bunker already was in place when it began pushing for its own subterranean "Panic Room." As promised, I am back to report on the progress of my research -- and while the Trump White House story is convoluted and evolving -- I have reached at least two preliminary conclusions: (1) The administration definitely knew a White House bunker already was in place, although we see evidence that officials took a "play dumb approach" when it came to sharing that news nugget with the public; (2) While I, like many Americans, have much to learn about the White House drama and related legal battles, the story gives off a strong whiff of Nixonesque "trickiness." 

Does that mean Americans should prepare to brace themselves for perhaps the second most infamous political scandal of our time -- one that has the potential to fly past Watergate into the No. 1 spot, with Donald Trump playing the role of "Evil President Surrounded by Yes Men (and Women) Who Finds Himself Forced Out of Office?" I think the answer is yes because the Trump bunker story seems to be developing that kind of stench.

 What could save Trump and his band of incompetent bootlickers? I can think of two things: (1) No one in authority at the moment, in either party, seems to have a clue how to deal with a criminal of Trump's "skillset." And we're talking here about just the ballroom/bunker scenario. That doesn't count fatal attacks on boaters in the Caribbean; the violent overthrow of Venezuela's government, plus apparent theft of the country's oil; a Congressionally unauthorized attack on Iran, resulting in estimated deaths across all parties at roughly 9,000 to more than 18,000; the use of the U.S. military for domestic law enforcement, plus attacks by ICE on U.S. citizens and routine use of "state-sanctioned kidnappings' against migrants denied due process . . . and the horrifying beat goes on; (2)  Many have called Howard Baker a hero of Watergate for standing up to a president of his own party. But if there is a similar figure in today's GOP, I can't imagine who it would be. 

Trump should have been impeached, investigated, prosecuted (and upon conviction) imprisoned a long time ago. That job gets harder the longer he stays in office. Perhaps Democrats will take over the House and Senate in this year's midterms. But with so-called socialists causing a rift in the party, Dems might be too divided to prevail. And who knows if our country even is capable of conducting honest elections at this point. We see signs that Trump, Elon Musk, and others are doing their best to prevent it.

For now, let's return to point No. 1 in the third paragraph above. It states that the Trump administration definitely knew a White House bunker was in place when it began it's ballroom construction project. How do we know that? Let's consider the following from the Wikipedia entry for the White House State Ballroom, which goes into detail about the demolition process that began in October 2025:

The White House State Ballroom is part of a new East Wing under construction at the White House, the official residence of the president of the United States. The new East Wing will replace the original, which was torn down in October 2025 in preparation for the new wing's construction. The site, in Washington, D.C., has been under construction since September 2025.

Announced in July 2025 and planned to open in September 2028, the stated purpose of the White House State Ballroom is to add a venue with a higher seating capacity than the East Room for formal events such as state dinners, and to add a secure event space for future presidents. The new East Wing is being built atop an under-construction six-story bunker that will replace the Presidential Emergency Operations Center (PEOD) that was demolished with the original East Wing.

What do the sentences in yellow tell us?  (1) The new East Wing will replace the original, which was torn down in October 2025, and; (2) The new East Wing is being built atop an under-construction six-story bunker that will replace the Presidential Emergency Operations Center (PEOC) that was demolished with the original East Wing.

In short, the administration knew the White House bunker existed because Trump ordered it to be demolished -- and he apparently did it with no authorization or consultation from Congress, as required by law. As we wrote in a post dated August 20, 2026:

Under 40 U.S.C. § 8106, “A building or structure shall not be erected on any reservation, park, or public grounds of the Federal Government in the District of Columbia without express authority of Congress.” A gigantic ballroom is obviously a “building or structure,” and Congress has not expressly authorized Trump and pals to build one in President’s Park.  

This is where Trump's actions start smelling Nixonian. We have more on that in upcoming posts.