As one who has great respect for the art of whining and groaning about matters of architecture, I must express my disappointment with the quality of the complaints I’ve seen surrounding the construction of the new White House ballroom.

For starters, the old East Wing is definitely not worth crying over. I did not know that such a building existed until about five minutes ago, and judging by the fact that White House pictures almost never include either wing, I am willing to bet that it did not hold a significantly more beloved place in the general consciousness of the American people than it did in my own mind – that is, until five minutes ago, when it became a political issue. However, while I do think that public recognition is a key determiner of historical value, I would not make the mistake of thinking that a lack of fame proves a lack of worth. So, let us ask: Was the old East Wing a great structure in its own rite? No. It was a squatty and uninteresting building that was hastily put up during World War II, largely for the purpose of covering the bunker that sits beneath it. In the intervening years it held office space for the First Lady and the calligrapher, as well as the presidential movie theater – all of which are either easy to relocate or wholesale unneeded. I’m not telling you that you can’t hate Trump, but for your own dignity, please, don’t pretend to love the East Wing.

Secondly, the decisions being made in this case are not examples of presidential overreach. Yes, the White House is the people’s house, but it is equally true that Trump is the people’s president. We chose him specifically for the purpose of making decisions about the people’s stuff, or at least that portion of the people’s stuff that has been placed within the executive realm. The executive mansion, one might think, is one of those things. Of course, the legislature is responsible for looking after the people’s money, but Trump isn’t asking for any of that. He has managed to get the project funded through donations, such that a $300M building will cost us only as much as is needed to maintain it over time, which, in the grand scheme of the federal budget, can hardly be worth mentioning. For those of you worrying that these donors will gain an undue influence over the president, I would direct your attention to campaign financing in general. In other words, as things now stand, we’ll be just as well hanged for stealing a sheep as for stealing a lamb.

Lastly, having a large entertaining space at the White House would be cool. For the past long while, any time the president has hosted a large social event, it has had to be outside under one of those big party tents. Granted, I can see some folksy charm in that, but in a greater sense I think it would be fitting for our head of state to have more solid accommodations in which to entertain on our behalf. That is what Trump’s ballroom will be, and I think it would be nice if we could all appreciate it. I think it would be nice if, once it is standing, we could all greet that new feature of our capital with a chuffed smile rather than