Washington– Republican senators left a meeting with the director of the US Secret Service on Tuesday saying they needed more details about a dossier A billion-dollar security plan for the White Houseincluding a proposed $220 million to secure President Donald Trump’s new East Wing ballroom.
Secret Service Director Sean Callan discussed the proposal at a closed-door luncheon. According to details of the plan obtained by The Associated Press, $220 million would go toward enhancing the hall addition, including “bulletproof glass, drone detection technologies, chemical and other threat filtration and detection systems, and a host of other national security functions.”
The Secret Service request comes after the man Charged with attempting to assassinate Trump At the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner last month. The rest of the money will go toward other security improvements, according to the document, including $180 million for a new facility to screen White House visitors and $175 million “for investments to train USSS operatives in the modern threat environment.”
Several GOP senators leaving the luncheon said the details were too vague. They want to know more about how the money is spent, and why it is needed now. Trump has repeatedly said the cost of building the hall will be paid for with $400 million in private funds, but the White House has not previously suggested security costs.
“I want more information,” said Florida Sen. Rick Scott, a close ally of the president. “I used to run companies, okay? If someone came to me and said they were going to spend a billion dollars on something, I would get more details.”
Senate Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Susan Collins questioned why not all of the security improvements were included in Trump’s budget earlier this year. She said she asked for “a lot of data.”
Indiana Sen. Todd Young said he wants to be supportive, but “they have to come back and give us more details on exactly how they arrived at the numbers.”
Republicans added escrow money to a bipartisan spending bill that would restore funding to immigration enforcement agencies. Questions from within the party about the White House funding proposal could jeopardize the legislation, which GOP leaders are trying to pass without any Democratic votes.
In addition to the improvements made by the White House, the Secret Service said it is requesting $175 million for “protected security enhancements,” $150 million for “advanced threats and technology,” including countering drones and airspace incursions, and $100 million for security at high-profile “events of national importance.”
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said Democrats will pressure the Senate parliamentarian to remove security funds from the bill. They also plan to introduce amendments that would force Republicans to vote on the funding if it remains in the legislation.
“How many Americans want to see a billion dollars for the dance floor, not for the cost of childcare and groceries?” Schumer said Tuesday.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Los Angeles, also attended the Senate Republican lunch. Some of its Republican members also expressed reservations about the billion-dollar proposal.
While Democrats and some Republicans rejected the request, Republican Senator Mike Rounds of South Dakota suggested the security plan could be scaled back, tying some of the request to future annual spending bills.
However, Rounds said it’s possible Republicans could approve the entire request once they get more details.
“I think as more information starts to come out, I think people will feel more comfortable with what they’re asking for,” Rounds said.
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Associated Press writers Kevin Freking and Stephen Groves contributed to this report.