U.S. appeals court blocks Trump’s $400 million White House ballroom project
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- The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a divided 2-1 order blocking Trump's $400 million White House ballroom, upholding a preliminary injunction won by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
- The court placed its ruling on hold for 14 days to allow the Trump administration to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.
- The panel's majority wrote that "Congress has not ceded unfettered authority to the Executive Branch to dramatically redesign, reshape, and reconstruct the White House — the People's House — to fit a particular President's desires."
- The National Trust for Historic Preservation sued after the administration tore down the East Wing and began building a 90,000-square-foot ballroom without seeking congressional authorization.
- District Judge Richard Leon, a George W. Bush appointee, had twice previously blocked above-ground construction while allowing underground work to continue.
- Trump defended the ballroom's doubled price tag on Truth Social, saying costs rose because the project is "approximately twice the size" of the original proposal and promising it "will be magnificent, safe, and secure!"
- A separate lawsuit recently found Trump's name was illegally added to the Kennedy Center and ordered its removal — part of broader Trump efforts to reshape central Washington's government buildings and monuments.
Why it matters: The ruling establishes that major construction at the White House requires congressional approval, constraining presidential self-help on federal landmark projects. With a 14-day stay before the injunction takes full effect, the administration has a narrow window to take the case to the Supreme Court; the underlying legal principle — that Congress, not the President alone, controls redesign of "the People's House" — sets a durable precedent for executive-branch limits.
