VIDEO: Heinrich Leads Effort to Successfully Strike Trump’s Billion Dollar Ballroom from Republican’s Budget Bill

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) released the following video on social media after winning an initial challenge to block Senate Republicans' from funding President Trump's ballroom with $1 billion in taxpayer dollars through their budget bill.

VIDEO: U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) announces his successful effort to strike President Trump's $1 billion ballroom from Republican's budget bill, May 18, 2026.

"He's busy trying to build a ballroom, trying to build an arch. Every vanity project that you can think of, and you're being asked to pick up the bill," said Heinrich. "But I've got some good news. I argued that this was not allowed in the budget reconciliation process. And the parliamentarian ruled with us. They stripped it out of the budget bill. They may come back and try again. But we're going to do everything we can to make sure that those dollars, which belong to you, your tax dollars do not get spent on a ridiculous vanity project."

BACKGROUND:

Under Senate rules, provisions included in a budget reconciliation bill must have a direct impact on federal spending or revenue and cannot be considered "extraneous" to the budget process. The Senate Parliamentarian is the nonpartisan official responsible for interpreting those rules, including the Byrd Rule - a Senate rule designed to prevent unrelated policy provisions from being jammed into reconciliation bills that can pass with a simple majority instead of the usual 60-vote threshold. In this case, the Parliamentarian advised that Republicans' proposal to spend taxpayer dollars on Trump's ballroom would be subject to a Byrd Rule challenge, meaning Democrats can force a vote requiring 60 senators to keep the provision in the bill - a threshold Republicans are unlikely to meet.

Heinrich and his colleagues are prepared to challenge any future language the Republicans try to pass to use taxpayer dollars to fund Trump's ballroom.

A full transcript of Heinrich's video is below:

So, here's the deal.

You're paying, you know, what?

$4.40 a gallon for gas right now.

For gasoline.

$5.50 for diesel fuel.

That price finds its way into everything you buy.

Groceries and everything you use to build a house.

And you name it.

So, you're being asked to pay more for healthcare, more for gasoline, more for diesel fuel, more for groceries.

And you're being asked to fund a billion-dollar ballroom for the President of the United States.

So, he's busy trying to build a ballroom, trying to build an arch.

Every vanity project that you can think of, and you're being asked to pick up the bill.

Like, your taxpayer dollars are going to be used for that ballroom.

But I've got some good news.

I argued that this was not allowed in the budget reconciliation process.

And the parliamentarian ruled with us.

They stripped it out of the budget bill.

Now, they may come back and try again.

But we're going to do everything we can to make sure that those dollars, which belong to you, your tax dollars do not get spent on a ridiculous vanity project.

Thanks.

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