A U.S. appeals court has ordered a halt to construction of Trump's ballroom at the White House
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia has ordered President Donald Trump’s administration to halt construction of a $400 million ballroom at the White House until the project receives congressional approval. At the same time, the court delayed the effective date of its ruling by two weeks to allow the administration to appeal it to the U.S. Supreme Court.
The court ruled by a 2-1 majority in favor of the historic preservation advocates who had filed the lawsuit to halt construction. Previously, the appeals court had allowed work to continue while the case was pending, but ultimately agreed with the lower court that such a large-scale renovation of the White House requires the direct consent of Congress.
The ruling states that the decision to build a large ballroom must be made by Congress, not by the executive branch on its own. The court also emphasized that it is not evaluating the merits of the project and does not rule out its implementation in the future once the necessary legislative approval is obtained.
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The 8,400-square-meter hall is being built on the site of the historic East Wing of the White House, which Trump ordered demolished last fall. According to Euronews, recent aerial photographs show that the structure has already risen above ground level on the east side of the residence.
Trump called the court ruling “horrible, politically motivated, and illegal” and stated his intention to appeal it. The president had previously insisted that the construction would be privately funded, but media reports in June indicated significant taxpayer spending on the project. Democrats also claimed that $350 million could have been redirected from the tax cut bill to fund the ballroom.
