Senate Republicans Question $1 Billion Secret Service Funding Request Tied to Trump Ballroom Security

Senate Republicans balked at a $1 billion funding request from the Trump administration and Secret Service, which partly covers security upgrades for President Donald Trump's ballroom.

GOP senators remain uneasy about the figure tucked into an immigration operations funding package. Many question its origins. "It was one thing when private dollars were building it," Sen. John Curtis, R-Utah, said. "If you're asking me for a billion dollars, I have some really hard questions. If I were a businessman and an employee came and said, ‘I have a project, and it's a billion dollars,’ I'd say, ‘You made that number up,’ right? Like, where did the number come from?"

Curtis voiced doubts ahead of a closed-door briefing with Secret Service Director Sean Curran. Curran shared a one-page overview of the request, obtained by Fox News Digital.

Several Republicans left the session unsatisfied and called for specifics on how the funds, part of a reconciliation package for immigration enforcement, would be allocated. "They need to go back and get us more details about exactly how they arrived at the figure," Sen. Todd Young, R-Neb., said afterward.

Curran's breakdown allocated $220 million to "White House complex hardening." That covers above- and below-ground security enhancements for Trump's ballroom, which the administration says will protect the president, his family, visitors, and high-level underground security operations.

Upgrades include bulletproof glass, drone detection technology, chemical filtration and detection systems, and other national security measures.

Another $180 million targets a White House visitor screening center. The rest, $600 million, funds Secret Service training, protection for Trump and other officials, and countermeasures against drones and aerial threats.

"What was clear today is this whole statement, ‘It's a billion dollars for a ballroom.’ Anyone who prints that is printing something they know is a lie. That's not true," Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., told Fox News Digital. "It's not a billion dollars for the ballroom."

Republicans stress the money supports broader security, not just the ballroom, but seek itemized justifications. They note the steep price draws scrutiny amid national economic pressures.

"The way I look at it, I look at it like a business guy," Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., told Fox News Digital. "So it's an investment, and it's gonna, you know, you have to explain to the American public, if you're gonna spend their money, how do you get a return?"

Scott and others back stronger protection for Trump, who survived a third assassination attempt last month, and future presidents. Some suggest trimming the request as work rushes on the $72 billion package.

"We want to make sure we're being responsible with taxpayer dollars and see what is the best vehicle for that, and then making sure that we're judicious with that money," Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., told Fox News Digital.

The request forms a minor part of funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol over three and a half years via budget reconciliation. Its fate remains uncertain under the Senate's Byrd Rule, which limits reconciliation contents. Democrats plan to challenge it, favoring spending on affordability.