In the chaotic minutes after news broke that a gunman had attempted to breach security at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, a familiar pattern unfolded on social media. A chorus of pro-Trump influencers and officials arrived at the same eerily specific and singular conclusion: The country needs Donald Trump’s ballroom.

“It’s time to build the ballroom,” Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche posted on X, attaching a letter demanding that the National Trust for Historic Preservation drop its lawsuit blocking the project. Former Attorney General Pam Bondi — who Trump had fired just weeks earlier — chimed in, writing, “We MUST have the Ballroom completed to protect POTUS and his guests.” On Fox News, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., suggested the ballroom’s planned “7-inch thick glass” will make it “a very safe environment to do events like that.” Even Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania fell in line.