In a battle between grifters, my money is on FIFA (the orange piece of shit is simply not yet in the same category). FIFA already stated that they won’t be moving venues - we should believe them (as Charles points out, any move would cost them lots of money - that simply won’t fly).

But here's the thing, Buddhamat dear: While I agree with you about FIFA, the teams may hesitate to come to Our Horrible Country.

No Team, No Game.

Money, my dear Ms Vel-DuRay - no country is pulling their national team out of a World Cup (the days of ethics in global sports died in the 80’s).

If you’re comfortable playing in Saudi Arabia and Russia, the US (even under our shitty leadership) is an easy sell.

@3 absolutely. The last World Cup was hosted in Qatar who literally built all their stadiums with slave labor. FIFA is not the standard to use for morality.

Trump is an asshole. Fill the streets.

“This Is Exactly How Dictators Rule”

So — does the Stranger now agree with we who said Gaza was not, in fact, The Most Important Place In The Entire History Of Ever, that Harris’ refusal to promise an arms embargo against an ally in wartime did not mean, “we should punish Harris and defeat her,” and that life would be far worse for far more innocent persons if Trump beat Harris?

Because the Stranger’s constant complaints about results from the successful strategy “to punish Harris and to defeat her,” certainly makes it sound that way!

(Asking for a friend.)

@6

Christ onna Crutch
Wormtongue, you 'forgot'
to include Kshama Sawant in
your Deflection cum self-Exoneration
for full-throating Isreal's land grab/Genocide

just admit that YOU are responsible
for electing thedjt and be
Finally, finished
with it.

your
Guilt is
Driving the
Rest of Us Crazy

Never underestimate the veniality of FIFA. If Trump promises them more money, they will gladly play elsewhere. Trump wouldn't care if they had to play indoors at the Kennedy Center, which he has given to FIFA for the cup. It's money first and last, screwing the left coast is just for shits and giggles.

@8: Charles writing a post on corruption and FIFA, without mentioning FIFA’s own luxurious history of same, represents a new level of mendacity, even for him and the Stranger. FIFA and Trump deeply deserve each other, based solely upon their felony convictions.

@2: How dare you call our country horrible. I hate you for that.

FIFA contracts for host cities state that FIFA has the full authority to move or cancel matches for specific reasons. The contracts typically list specific justifications, such as war, civil unrest, terrorism, or other significant safety and security concerns.

Fifa’s president Gianni Infantino agreed that World Cup matches due to be played in the US next year could still be moved on safety grounds at President Trump’s request.

I welcome your hatred, Collidge dear.

And I think Our Dear Charles is spot on about the White House Ballroom. If it does end up being constructed, it much be demolished. We cannot allow such an unauthorized modification of the White House to become a precedent. And I think that Donald Trump should be sued for the cost of the reconstruction of the East Wing.

@12: You gonna sue the Brits for trying to set fire to the place, too? ;-)

(Why does anyone assume Trump can build anything to last, if it even gets built at all?)

If the Epstein Ballroom turns out well, and is as specular as the renderings, it would be really petty to destroy it.

If it’s half as tacky as it appears in its renderings it should be nuked from space and never spoken of again. Republicans are horrible people with even more horrible taste.

Coolidge dear, It’s a ballroom. There’s literally a million of them. Calm down.

Even if it is as exquisite as the Hermitage, it must go. It is an unauthorized modification one of the seats of our government. Surely even you understand that.

@16: No, Trump should have followed design procedures but presidents have done changes to the complex and they've remained. So should this.

We really do need a ballroom.

No, Coolidge dear. We do not "need" a ballroom. The private sector is more than capable of providing venues for presidential entertaining.

You must strive to not be such a good German, and be a better American.

@18: It is privately funded. If your only quibble is the accuracy of that, that's another conversation.

Yes we really do need a ballroom. Tents are not a suitable replacement.

Coolidge dear, all this time I thought you were a crypto fascist, but it turns out you are a communist. Who knew?

So the state must control the means of production, at least when it comes to state dinners, eh Comrade?

@20: What was your stream of consciousness between "privately funded" and "communist"?

@20: Thanks for the sly historical references, my dear! You remain one of the treasures of Slog. (Who knew the mighty Ol' U.S. of A. suffered from a Ballroom Gap? Tis' pity C. Dollar has no knowledge of Wm. F. Buckley, other than the name.)

@22: No, not that much besides Firing Line. Though I did run into him personally, not in Ballroom A, but in a Microsoft corridor in the late 90s.

Coolidge dear, while “privately funded” (ha!) is not really at all a concern to me (my main concern is unauthorized modification of federal property and financial grift), let’s entertain your concern for a moment. Once we presumably get this thing, who has to pay for it? Is trump gong to provide an endowment? Who’s going to pay for maintenance, utilities, staffing, etc for a 9000 square foot ballroom that may be used a few times each year?

Btw, 9000 square feet is not even a particularly large space. It’s about half the size of the Seattle Westin’s Grand Ballroom, which was quite a sensation in 1980, but sort of meh sized now.

@24: "Who’s going to pay for maintenance, utilities, staffing, etc for a 9000 square foot ballroom that may be used a few times each year?"

Taxpayers, just as GSA handles thousands of government buildings every year. Now are you now complaining about taxes? How delightfully Republican of you!

A few times each year is still making use of it. But I imagine it will be a lot more of that as it could also be a performing arts venue in addition to dinners and ballroom dancing.

Oh Coolidge, poor dear, deluded Coolidge. Promise me you'll never lose that childlike sense of naïveté. It's really quite charming. Do you really think that the Secret Service would allow this ballroom to become a "performing arts venue in addition to dinners and ballroom dancing"? Do you think they should?

But - again (and do try to focus, dear) - the issue is this sort of wholesale, unauthorized destruction being allowed to become a precedent. (Not to mention the grift, which is a whole other issue). What if a future president decided to demolish the entire White House, or any of the many monuments in DC in favor of a memorial to themselves. Would that be OK, dear?

A few times a year is a far cry from the east wing’s previous activity, and the amount of background clearance and security checks required to be inside the white house perimeter would be prohibitive for use as a non-official event space.

And now you’re saying taxpayers should be on the hook for maintenance, but just a few comments ago the ballroom being funded by corporate bribes was the reason we’re not supposed to care about it at all. If we’re supposed to be cool with the president demolishing a part of our national history to build a monument to graft and bad taste because we don’t have to pay for its construction, why are we supposed to be cool with paying for it’s ongoing maintenance? Pick a lane.

@27: "And now you’re saying taxpayers should be on the hook for maintenance, but just a few comments ago the ballroom being funded by corporate bribes was the reason we’re not supposed to care about it at all."

And, given who will oversee construction, we can reasonably expect design, materials, and workmanship of the very poorest qualities, meaning for this undersized (@24) edifice, maintenance costs will prove far higher than normal for a structure of this type.

Barth and tensorna dears, while I agree with both of you, let’s not forget…..

“Even if it is as exquisite as the Hermitage, it must go. It is an unauthorized modification one of the seats of our government.”

Don’t let Our Dear Coolidge’s foolish notions distract from that.

That too, Catalina. My guess is that when the dust settles they will be ordered to reconstruct the east wing because they deliberately skirted procedure knowing no one would approve destroying an actively operating public landmark to build a gaudy ballroom. Hopefully the billionaires who signed up for this abomination will be on the hook for fixing the mess they made.