Trump's Venezuela attack was quid pro quo for massive ballroom donations: lawyer

A project overseen by President Donald Trump has highlighted "corruption" in the White House, two political commentators have claimed.

The building of the White House ballroom has been denounced as a "corruption tumor on the White House grounds" by attorney Norm Eisen. The legal expert, who served as co-counsel for the House Judiciary Committee during the first impeachment trial of Trump, has warned the renovations made to the White House so far show just how far Trump is willing to appease oil companies and benefactors.

Trump has claimed the ballroom is being funded by private donors — including oil companies.

And Eisen suggested the attacks on Venezuela could be seen as a hand back to those oil barons.

Speaking with Greg Sergeant of The New Republic, Eisen suggested the ballroom is more symbolic than practical. He said, "We should not be invading foreign countries to seize their oil. I mean, the guy is such an unsophisticated dictator. Trump is setting up a payback loop to the big oil companies."

"But then he’s done quasi-official fundraising for his whims, like the ballroom that he’s going to erect over the destroyed East Wing. That ballroom is like—remember how in the Popeye cartoon, Popeye would have one giant arm, the rest of him scrawny? That ballroom is symbolic; it’s like a corruption tumor on the White House grounds."

Eisen went on to suggest Trump's claim of "draining the swamp," which he touted during his 2016 presidential campaign, had failed.

He said, "Donald Trump said he would fight the corruption of the swamp. Instead, he’s just deepening the swamp. So that’s one point." Later in the podcast, Eisen made the point that oil companies "contributing to Trump's campaign ventures" could see executives exercise some newfound power on White House buildings.

He added, "And then, of course, that sets up this vicious cycle where those same oil companies and/or their executives can start contributing to Trump’s campaign ventures, to his misbegotten vanity projects in government, like the ballroom, like the Kennedy Center."

Eisen would highlight a statement from ex-MAGA faithful Marjorie Taylor Greene as part of the "extreme unpopularity" the president is now facing.

Eisen added, "Healthcare premiums are skyrocketing all over the country because of Donald Trump’s policy failures. Marjorie Greene notes that. And it’s the distraction factor. This is not what they put Donald Trump in office to do. And I think you see that in the extreme unpopularity."

"Most unpopular president at this point in their tenure of anyone not named Trump — except for the possible exception of his first term, the most unpopular."