WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is not the first president to want more room in the White House for entertaining, the longest-serving top aide in the executive residence said, offering some backup for the reason Trump cited for his ballroom construction project.
Gary Walters spent more than two decades as the White House chief of staff to Presidents Ronald Reagan, George HW Bush, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush — a role that includes the residence’s general manager.
“All the presidents I’ve ever had the opportunity to serve talked about some possibility of an ever-expanding field for entertainment,” Walters said in an interview with The Associated Press about his recently published memoir.
Trump has been talking about building a White House ballroom for years, even before entering the political arena. In July, the White House announced that a 90,000-square-foot suite on the east side of the complex would be built to house 650 guests at an estimated cost of $200 million. Trump has said that it will be paid for by private donations, including from him.
The Republican president later increased the capacity of the proposed ballroom to 999 people and demolished the two-story East Wing of the White House to build it there by October. In December, he updated the price tag to $400 million—double the original estimate.
Images of the East Wing’s demolition shocked historians, preservationists and others, but Walters said the campus has a long history of projects, including the demolition of conservatories, greenhouses and stables in 1902 to build the West Wing, a third-floor residence extension, a former World War II building, and World War I staffing works. Other White House Offices.
“So there’s always construction around the White House,” Walters said.
Other presidents lamented the lack of space for entertainment
When Walters was on the job, the capacity of the White House’s largest public room was one of the first topics he discussed with the incoming president, first lady and their social secretary, he said. The presidents he served spoke of the limited numbers the White House could handle.
When set up for a state dinner, the state dining room can hold about 130 people: 13 round tables with seating for 10, Walters said. The East Room can accommodate about 300 chairs — a little less if space is needed for television cameras.
Trump often complains that both rooms are too small. He has also complained about the use of large tents in the Southern Plains, a staple for large events such as ritzy state dinners for foreign leaders. Walters said there were problems with the tents.
“When it rains, the water runs downhill and the grass gets wet, no matter what we try to do,” Walters said. “We dug a culvert around the outside of the tent to drain the water.” The tent has damaged the grass, requiring more work to replant it, he said.
Walters admitted it was a bit jarring to see the East Wing torn down, and said he has fond personal memories of the space. “I met my wife at the White House and she worked in the East Wing, so it was a joy for me,” Walters, 79, said.
His wife, Barbara, was a receptionist at the visitor’s office during the administrations of Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. Recently, this couple celebrated 48 years of marriage.
A broken bone changes the course of Usher’s career
Walters owes his place as the longest-serving White House chief of staff in history to a piece of bad luck.
He was 23 years old in the early 1970s, honorably discharged from the Army and looking for a job that would allow him to finish college at night. He was hired and accepted by the Executive Security Service, the predecessor of the US Secret Service.
But shortly before the graduation ceremony, Walters broke his leg playing football. He can’t patrol out of uniform, wears a cast and can get around on crutches, so he’s given a temporary assignment at the White House Police Control and Placement Center. He stayed for five years.
“This injury also changed the course of my career,” Walters wrote in his memoir, “White House Memories: 1970-2007: Recollections of a Long-Serving Chief Usher.” He “gained a deep knowledge of White House procedures and security systems that will ultimately benefit me greatly in my future role in the Usher’s Office.”
A few months after being promoted to sergeant in 1975, he found out that the usher office had opened. He applied and joined in early 1976 as an assistant.
A decade later, he was promoted to chief usher by Reagan, who gave Walters the top job of overseeing housing maintenance, construction and renovation projects, and administrative, financial and personnel functions, as well as food service. He managed about 90 butlers, housekeepers, cooks, florists, electricians, engineers, plumbers and other staff.
Walters retired in 2007 after 37 years at the White House, including a record 21 years as chief usher. He served under seven presidents, from Nixon to George W. Bush.
During that time, Walters saw a wide swath of presidential history: the only president to resign, the only appointed vice president to become president-elect, the president to be impeached and remain in office, a father and son to become president, and the Supreme Court deciding the closest presidential election in American history.
He is often asked what he likes most about his job and “without hesitation I would say it is getting to know and interact directly with Presidents, First Ladies and other members of their families. It has been an honor to know them with my own eyes and ears,” Walters wrote.
