The White House Ballroom (thread 7), Episode 3: Why Chester A. Arthur Would Approve of a Gilded White House Ballroom

Quick catch-up: after a short break, we’re circling back to Chester A. Arthur and the whole White House ballroom debate. He wasn’t shy about luxury; he thought elegance and ceremony showed a nation’s dignity, not just vanity.

So whether you love or hate modern spectacle, Arthur would probably tell you to stop pretending grandeur is always corrupt—sometimes it’s how a country signals it belongs on the world stage.