President Donald Trump announced on Monday that construction has begun on a new, privately funded White House Ballroom – a long-envisioned addition designed to host state visits and large gatherings – as part of a modernization of the East Wing.

‘I am pleased to announce that ground has been broken on the White House grounds to build the new, big, beautiful White House Ballroom,’ Trump said on Truth Social. ‘Completely separate from the White House itself, the East Wing is being fully modernized as part of this process, and will be more beautiful than ever when it is complete!

‘For more than 150 years, every President has dreamt about having a Ballroom at the White House to accommodate people for grand parties, State Visits, etc. I am honored to be the first President to finally get this much-needed project underway — with zero cost to the American Taxpayer!’ he continued. ‘The White House Ballroom is being privately funded by many generous Patriots, Great American Companies, and, yours truly. This Ballroom will be happily used for Generations to come!’

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said during a briefing in July that the construction of the estimated $200 million new ballroom would begin in September and be ‘completed long before the end of President Trump’s term.’

Her announcement came after a similar gesture earlier this year, when Trump personally financed the installation of two 88-foot American flags flanking the White House, each reportedly costing about $50,000.

‘The White House is currently unable to host major functions honoring world leaders in other countries without having to install a large and unsightly tent approximately 100 yards away from the main building’s entrance,’ Leavitt said at the time, adding the new ballroom will be ‘a much needed and exquisite addition.’

She also said the United States Secret Service will provide the necessary security enhancements and modifications during the construction.

The project is intended to provide a dedicated space for hosting official events, state dinners and large ceremonial gatherings.

The new 90,000-square-foot addition will accommodate approximately 650 seated guests and will stay true to the classical design of the White House.

The White House does not have a formal ballroom, and the new ballroom will take the place of the current East Wing of the White House.

Trump chose McCrery Architects to design the project, with Clark Construction overseeing the build and AECOM providing engineering support.

Fox News Digital’s Amanda Macias contributed to this report.

A pair of Senate Republicans plan to nominate President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize for his role in fast-tracking the production and distribution of vaccines during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., and Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo., plan to introduce a resolution that would formally nominate Trump for the prize for launching Operation Warp Speed at the onset of the pandemic in 2020.

The executive action saw a large-scale collaboration among multiple federal agencies and private companies to fast-track the research, development and distribution of vaccines during the pandemic, and was funded by billions from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act. 

The lawmakers’ push comes after Trump expressed his desire to win the Peace Prize for his involvement in striking a deal between Israel and Hamas, and shortly after the prize committee passed over him. It’s also the most recent in a string of nomination pushes from congressional Republicans. 

Both Cassidy and Barrasso, who were doctors before becoming legislators, lauded the massive mobilization effort and credited Operation Warp Speed for saving millions of lives during the pandemic.

‘When Americans needed a vaccine in record time to stop a once-in-a-generation pandemic, President Trump delivered,’ Cassidy said. ‘The Nobel Prize has been given for a lot less. He should receive the next one!’

Barrasso contended that Operation Warp Speed would ‘not have been possible without President Trump’s bold leadership.’

‘He bent an infamously slow bureaucracy to his will to bring a vaccine to market in under a year. Operation Warp Speed saved millions of lives in the United States and millions more lives around the world. President Trump deserves the Nobel Peace Prize for his life-saving achievement,’ he said.

Other congressional Republicans have sought to nominate Trump for the award for varying achievements this year, including his involvement in striking a deal to see the end of the Israel-Hamas War. 

And Dr. Mehmet Oz, who Trump tapped as administrator for the Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services, argued the president should win the prize for Operation Warp Speed, which he called a ‘a massive success for our country.’ 

But their push to nominate Trump for his role in vaccine development comes after both lawmakers sparred with Human Health and Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., during a Senate hearing last month following turmoil at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and questions over his stance on vaccines.

Cassidy pressed Kennedy during his appearance before the Senate Finance Committee in September, where the HHS Secretary agreed that Trump should win the prize for Operation Warp Speed.

‘Absolutely, senator,’ Kennedy said.

However, at the time, Cassidy questioned Kennedy’s actions against vaccines prior to his role as HHS Secretary — and while leading the agency — that appeared to counter his support for Operation Warp Speed.

Kennedy countered that he began litigating against former President Joe Biden’s COVID-19 vaccine mandates and not against Trump’s push with Operation Warp Speed.

‘First of all, the reason that Operation Warp Speed was genius is it did something nobody ever [had] done — I don’t think any president but President Trump could do it — it got the vaccine to market that was perfectly matched to the virus at that time,’ Kennedy said. 

A House Republican exploring higher office is predicting the ongoing government shutdown will make the 2026 midterm field a more difficult one for Democrats.

‘Once all the dust settles, I think people will think, ‘Why did the Democrats shut it down? What was their reason? What did they get out of it?’’ Rep. Randy Feenstra, R-Iowa, told Fox News Digital.

‘And I think once this all passes over the next two, three months, I think people will think, like, ‘Shame on all these partisan antics the government did and shame on [Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.] for going down this path, having no idea of how to get it reopened.’

Feenstra is expected to announce a run for Iowa governor, having already started gathering endorsements and creating a ‘Feenstra for Governor’ website.

He’s also one of the vast majority of House Republicans who voted to pass the GOP’s government funding bill on Sept. 19.

It was a seven-week extension of fiscal year (FY) 2025 federal funding levels called a continuing resolution (CR), aimed at giving congressional negotiators more time to strike a longer-term deal on FY2026 spending.

But in the Senate, where at least several Democrats are needed to reach the 60-vote threshold to break a filibuster, progress has stalled.

Senate Democrats have tanked the bill in the upper chamber 11 times since the House passed it.

Three members of the Senate Democratic caucus have been voting with Republicans, but under the current tally, at least five more are needed to hold a final vote on the bill.

Democrats are demanding that any funding bill be paired with significant concessions on healthcare, specifically an extension of Obamacare subsidies that were enhanced during the COVID-19 pandemic, which are set to expire at the end of this year.

‘I think it affects people up and down the ticket, because you have the Democrats … who say, ‘Schumer is right.’ You have these liberal progressives that no matter what happens, they just want to spend more money, and they want to make sure illegal immigrants get healthcare,’ Feenstra said.

‘It’s very concerning, I think once people understand that, I think it could have a really catastrophic effect on Democrats next election cycle,’ he said.

Democrats have called GOP accusations that they want to restore healthcare for illegal immigrants a lie. A counter-proposal for a CR introduced by Democrats last month would eliminate healthcare changes in Republicans’ One Big Beautiful Bill Act, some of which are aimed at keeping certain noncitizens from accessing government-funded healthcare.

Feenstra also criticized Democrats’ counter-proposal because it would eliminate a new $50 billion rural hospital fund established in Republicans’ policy bill.

‘Everybody’s really worried about our healthcare. There’s $50 billion in the ‘big, beautiful bill,’ [President Donald Trump’s] big, beautiful bill, to help critical access hospitals in the Midwest and in Iowa. That’s in jeopardy right now,’ Feenstra said.

‘So there’s a lot of concern right now in rural Iowa. And everybody understands that you’ve got to get the government open so that we can negotiate and figure this out.’

The Iowa Republican, whose district skews heavily rural, said he was also worried about critical programs for farmers that are endangered by the shutdown.

‘This is really affecting the farm community over in the Midwest,’ he said.

Former President Joe Biden completed a round of radiation treatment for his aggressive form of prostate cancer on Monday.

Biden had been undergoing treatment at Penn Medicine Radiation Oncology in Philadelphia for several weeks. The former president’s daughter, Ashley Biden, hailed the milestone in a post on social media.

‘Rung the bell! Thank you to the incredible doctors, nurses, and staff at Penn Medicine. We are so grateful!’ she wrote on Instagram.

‘He rang the bell today,’ Biden spokeswoman Kelly Scully confirmed, according to CBS News.

‘Dad has been so damn brave throughout his treatment. Grateful,’ Ashley wrote in a follow-up post.

It is common practice for cancer treatment centers to have patients ring a bell when they complete a round of radiation treatment. It serves as both a mark of progress for the patient and a form of encouragement for other patients undergoing treatment in the facility.

It is unclear whether Biden will need to undergo further rounds of radiation therapy.

Biden announced his diagnosis with prostate cancer in May, saying it had already metastasized and spread to his bones. The announcement redoubled concerns that the White House was not being forthright about Biden’s health during his time in office.

Biden also underwent surgery Sept. 4 to remove cancerous skin cells through a procedure known as Mohs surgery.

During his presidency, Biden had a cancerous skin lesion removed from his chest, the White House previously said. Former White House physician Kevin O’Connor noted in February 2023 that a biopsy of skin tissue taken during a health assessment revealed cancerous cells, all of which were successfully removed.

Fox News’ Bonny Chu contributed to this report.