YouTube Settles Trump Lawsuit for $22 Million, Bolstering White House Ballroom Fund

YouTube, owned by Google parent Alphabet, has agreed to pay $22 million to settle a lawsuit filed by President Donald Trump. This significant payment concludes a four-year legal battle stemming from the platform’s temporary suspension of Mr. Trump’s account following the 2021 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

Court papers filed this week reveal that the $22 million will be directed into the Trust for the National Mall, specifically earmarked to support the construction of the ambitious White House State Ballroom project championed by Mr. Trump. An additional $2.5 million from the overall settlement will be disbursed among other plaintiffs whose accounts were also removed from the site, including the American Conservative Union.

This settlement marks the latest in a series of victories for Mr. Trump against major tech firms. Earlier this year, Meta (Facebook and Instagram’s parent company) paid $25 million in January, followed by X’s (formerly Twitter) $10 million settlement in February, bringing Mr. Trump’s total tech company lawsuit winnings to approximately $60 million. Mr. Trump’s accounts on Meta and X were restored in 2022, and his YouTube account followed in 2023.

The lawsuit against YouTube had argued that the suspension violated Mr. Trump’s First Amendment rights, claiming it was a response to federal government coercion. YouTube’s attorneys had previously deemed this argument “meritless.”

The White House State Ballroom, announced by the Trump administration in July, is planned as a 90,000-square-foot facility within the East Wing, capable of seating 650 guests. CBS News reported earlier this month that nearly $200 million has already been pledged by corporate and individual donors for the project, with fundraising efforts ongoing. President Trump, who returned to office in January, has notably strengthened ties with tech leaders, with figures like Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos attending his inauguration.

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