Top Trump official blasts Larry Krasner over comments about blowing up White House ballroom
Attorney General Todd Blanche said Krasner's comments that the White House ballroom should be blown up were "disgusting." The district attorney said he stands by his remarks "100%."
Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner drew a rebuke Wednesday from Attorney General Todd Blanche after he said President Donald Trump’s White House ballroom, which is currently under construction, should be blown up and pieces of debris sold as paperweights.
Krasner, a progressive Democrat who has centered much of his political identity on opposing Trump, made the initial comments Tuesday during an event at the President’s House Site, George Washington’s Philadelphia home. The Trump administration this year removed educational panels about slavery from the site and replaced them with an exhibit that experts say sanitizes history.
According to NBC Philadelphia, the district attorney said during his remarks at the annual Slavery Commiseration ceremony on Tuesday that “there is a beautiful time coming [when] the memorial will be here.”
“Let me tell you what will not be here: There will not be a ballroom,” Krasner said, referring to the ballroom and military bunker that Trump wants to replace the demolished East Wing of the White House. “What is going to be happening is that, in about 10 or 15 years … I’m gonna have a paperweight sitting on my desk. You know what that paperweight’s going to be? It’s gonna be a piece of the ballroom after we all blow it up.”
Krasner paused, then added: “In an official ceremony, just so we’re clear. In an official ceremony, we’re gonna blow it up, and we’re gonna give the taxpayers their money back by selling all the pieces as paperweights.”
The remarks by the Philadelphia district attorney, a third-term prosecutor who has recently flirted with running for higher office, were the latest in a long line of provocative comments he has made about Trump and other GOP officials. Earlier this year, the White House press secretary and Republican members of Congress ripped Krasner after he called federal immigration enforcement agents “wannabe Nazis” and said Trump’s administration is orchestrating a “fascist takeover” of the country.
And last month, Krasner rallied with protesters in Washington and slammed House Republicans after they subpoenaed documents from his office related to the city’s immigration policies.
Video of Krasner speaking at the event in Independence National Historical Park rocketed around social media this week, drawing condemnation from prominent supporters of the president, some of whom said his comments were inciting violence.
The White House’s “rapid response” account wrote Tuesday on X that Krasner’s comments were “sick” and that “Democrats are the party of violence.”
On Wednesday, Blanche, who was confirmed earlier this month, appeared on Fox News’ America’s Newsroom to discuss a range of issues. Host Dana Perino asked him about Krasner’s comments and the timeline for the controversial ballroom, which had been briefly on hold amid litigation contending the Trump administration needs congressional authorization for the project. The Supreme Court this week allowed construction to proceed while justices consider the case.
“The ballroom is being built,” Blanche said. “And it’s disgusting that a district attorney in Philadelphia, who, by the way, has a city with its own problems, is so focused on what the president is doing in the White House.”
In an interview Wednesday, Krasner said he stands by his initial comments about the ballroom “100%” because “when you demolish a building, you do it with explosives and/or wrecking balls.”
Krasner added that he sees Blanche’s opposition to his rhetoric at the Slavery Commiseration event as part of the Trump administration’s broader project of stripping historical sites like the President’s House of references to slavery.
“I support the permanent existence of this historically important memorial in Philadelphia. I know that may be disturbing to white supremacists, but too bad,” Krasner said. “Philly is going to stand up for its history, and Philly understands that being an elected official is not about making everybody your friend. It’s about having the right enemies.”
