The US Supreme Court on Friday allowed President Donald Trump’s administration to continue construction of his White House ballroom project for now, temporarily pausing a judicial order that would halt much of the development.
The court’s action, known as an administrative stay, gives the justices additional time to consider the administration’s formal request to let it continue working on the $400 million ballroom while a lawsuit by a historic preservation group seeking to stop the project proceeds.
In an August 14 filing to the Supreme Court, Justice Department lawyers echoed Trump’s contention that the project is a security necessity, citing assassination attempts against the president and other recent threats.
“This case involves an extraordinary and unlawful injunction that will halt the ongoing construction of the integrated military complex, including a totally secure ballroom space, at the East Wing of the White House, which is vitally required by national security,” they wrote.
The nonprofit National Trust for Historic Preservation sued last year after the administration tore down the White House East Wing and began building a 90,000-square-foot ballroom without seeking specific approval from Congress.
Trump has said the ballroom will be “the greatest of its kind ever built.”
The project combines the above-ground ballroom with an extensive underground complex. Trump has said the project includes bomb shelters, medical facilities, shielding from drones and missiles and other security features that are “all tied together as one big, expensive and very complex unit”.
On August 7, the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, in a 2-1 ruling, upheld US District Judge Richard Leon’s order directing the administration to halt above-ground construction. The order had been set to take effect on Friday.
‘A temporary tenant’
“Each president is a temporary tenant, not the owner, of the White House,” and cannot fundamentally reshape it without congressional approval, the DC Circuit’s ruling stated.
The district judge’s order did not permanently bar construction of a ballroom. It blocked above-ground efforts while allowing below-ground construction to continue, as well as work deemed “strictly necessary” for the safety and security of the White House.
In its ruling, the DC Circuit said national security arguments “are not an automatic get-out-of-law-free card”.
The Justice Department said in its August 14 filing that the overall East Wing project, including both the underground facilities and the above-ground ballroom, is 65 per cent complete.
Trump has said the ballroom project is a security necessity, and has referred to the structure as a “military centre” in a post on Truth Social. Trump called the DC Circuit’s decision “horrendous” and politically motivated, and said it left him, other White House officials and visitors exposed to attack.
“This unjust decision must be overturned by the Supreme Court in its entirety,” Trump wrote.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation in court papers urged the justices to turn away the administration’s bid to continue with ballroom construction while litigation proceeds.
“Each court to examine the question has agreed that (the Trump administration has) no unilateral legal authority constitutional, statutory or otherwise to build a massive ballroom on the site of the now-demolished East Wing,” lawyers for the group wrote.
“And each court has told (the administration) in no uncertain terms that they must stop their illegal construction unless and until they receive express approval from Congress,” it wrote.
The project is part of Trump’s broader efforts to reshape the Washington landscape, including plans to build a 76-metre arch and revamp the Kennedy Centre, a cultural landmark and performance centre.
The demolished East Wing housed the first lady’s offices and the White House movie theatre. It was originally built in 1902 during Theodore Roosevelt’s presidency and greatly expanded in 1942 during Franklin Roosevelt’s presidency.
