For those on the Left complaining about the cost to the Taxpayer, More Lies: Speaking of the brand new Helicopter Pad on the South Lawn of the WH... a pad which can double as a great gathering place for invited guests at WH functions. Let's start with the cost. It's around $5–6 million, for the project that was announced in July 2026. But taxpayers aren't paying for it. It's a permanent granite pad (four inches thick, quarried in California), not just repaved asphalt — replacing the old setup where Marine One landed directly on the South Lawn grass on a simple metal disc. Why Sikorsky is paying: the newer VH-92A Patriot helicopters (which entered service in 2024, ironically under Biden, but rarely landed at the White House because of this exact problem) are roughly 2.5 times more powerful than the 40-year-old fleet they're replacing, and their rotor wash was tearing up the grass — "ripping it out," in Trump's words, rather than just discoloring it. Trump has said Sikorsky agreed to cover it because the company "felt a little guilty" for not disclosing how disruptive the new helicopters would be. It's technically routed through the National Park Service (which maintains White House grounds), with Lockheed/Sikorsky funding it as a private contribution rather than using taxpayer money. There was a mid-construction hiccup: about two months in, Trump had part of it redone because the original foundation followed the natural slope of the lawn rather than being level enough to double as a patio/event space. It officially opened this week — Trump cut the ribbon and departed on a VH-92A for the UN General Assembly trip, which was also the first time that helicopter model had ever flown a president off the White House grounds. So: no more grass, no more soggy shoes for the First Lady, and no cost to taxpayers, at least as structured — Sikorsky/Lockheed Martin is picking up the full tab.