Trump told a White House Hispanic Heritage Month event the ballroom is ‘a long way down,’ then said ‘only a Hispanic could survive that fall’

President Donald Trump told guests at a White House Hispanic Heritage Month event that it was “a long way down” from the edge of his unfinished ballroom, then said “only a Hispanic could survive that fall,” according to 9News. The event took place Wednesday, Sept. 30. The crowd cheered.

Trump was describing the East Wing ballroom project and said the group would be among the first to see it. “You literally will be the first group ever to enter the premises,” he told them. He described the project as “what will be, I think, the greatest ballroom ever built.” He also said, “Don’t fall over the edge because it’s a long way down. And only a Hispanic could survive that fall. So I’m not overly worried.”

The speech ran nearly an hour, and Trump first addressed the occasion about 22 minutes in, the outlet reported. He said, “I’m thrilled to have you at the White House celebrating National Hispanic Heritage Month.” The observance runs each year from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15.

Hispanic voters and the 2026 midterms

Hispanic voters are the second-largest group of eligible voters after White voters, according to a Pew Research Center analysis published Sept. 10. Pew counts 39.0 million Hispanic eligible voters, about 16% of the roughly 250 million eligible voters nationwide. The remarks came ahead of the November midterm elections.

A New York Times/Siena poll conducted Sept. 8 to 13 put Trump’s approval among Hispanic voters at 26%, Newsweek reported. The report also cited a Cook Political Report/TelevisaUnivision survey that put his job approval among Hispanic likely voters in Texas at 33%. The report also quoted an April Pew survey finding that “66 percent of Latino Trump voters approve of his job performance, down 27 percentage points since the start of his second term in January 2025.”

The ballroom is a 90,000-square-foot project built after the administration demolished the East Wing, Scotusblog reported. The National Trust for Historic Preservation sued in December 2025 to pause construction. On Aug. 7, the D.C. Circuit affirmed the district judge’s ruling but gave the government 14 days to seek relief from the Supreme Court.

On Aug. 21, Chief Justice John Roberts issued a temporary order that lets work continue while the Supreme Court considers the government’s request. The Solicitor General told the court the project was “65% complete in its entirety,” according to the report.

Trump also spoke about immigration policy. “It’s the hardest job that I’ve had,” he said, explaining that critics “say you’re too tough or you’re too soft.” He added, “If I ran Venezuela, if I ran any country, I would do exactly the same thing that Maduro did.” Nicolas Maduro, the former Venezuelan president, was captured in a U.S. operation in January.

The initial report did not include a White House response to the remark about the fall.