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An appeals court ruled on Friday that President Donald Trump's administration must halt construction of his $400 million ballroom at the White House because the project lacks Congressional approval.
Trump does not have the individual authority to build an 8,400-square-meter (90,000-square-foot) ballroom on the site where the White House East Wing stood before he ordered its demolition last fall, according to a decision by a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
Friday's ruling marked the second time this week that the administration has made headlines for construction plans that have been called into question. An assessment by the National Park Service determined that a 76-meter (250-foot) tall triumphal arch that Trump proposed building could jeopardize the historical significance of dozens of sites near the traffic circle where it is intended to be built, between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery.
In a 2-1 decision regarding the ballroom, the court sided with historical preservation advocates who filed a lawsuit to stop the construction of the massive structure, which has begun to rise above ground level on the east side of the White House, according to the most recent aerial photos of the site. However, it indicated it would stay its own ruling for two weeks to allow the administration to appeal to the Supreme Court.
“Whether a grand ballroom should be built is a decision for Congress, not a matter for the Executive Branch to act upon on its own,” the ruling noted.
“This resolution has absolutely nothing to do with whether the proposed ballroom is desirable or not as a matter of public policy. This ruling does not even necessarily mean that the defendants cannot, ultimately, build the ballroom.”
“What it does mean (...) is that the defendants cannot do so during the district court's expedited judicial process without obtaining Congressional authorization, as required by the Constitution and the laws,” it pointed out.
Trump insists that Congressional approval is unnecessary
So far, neither the White House nor Trump has provided any comment. After the lower court ordered a halt to above-ground construction earlier this year, the president argued that Congressional permission to build the ballroom was unnecessary because public funds were not being used to pay for it.
Trump has said he has raised hundreds of millions of dollars from corporations and wealthy individuals, including himself, to cover the construction costs.
“He says I need Congressional approval, and he is very wrong,” Trump said in March following U.S. District Judge Richard Leon's ruling against the ballroom. “This is privately funded.”
The National Trust for Historic Preservation, the non-profit organization that filed the lawsuit against the administration, said on Friday that the decision affirmed “the right of the American people to express their views on the historic places they cherish,” including the White House.
“From the beginning, our position has been clear and consistent: the law states that only Congress can authorize the construction of a ballroom at the White House,” said Brent Leggs, the group's president and CEO, in a statement. “We are pleased with the DC Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision to uphold the District Court's preliminary injunction, which, although stayed for 14 days, will prevent any above-ground construction of the ballroom unless and until Congress acts.”
The panel upheld an April 16 order by U.S. District Judge Richard Leon for the administration to stop work on the above-ground ballroom. Leon, nominated by Republican President George W. Bush, allowed work to continue underground on a bunker and other planned “national security facilities” at the site.
The Republican president lashed out at Leon's decision on social media, labeling him a “Trump-hating” judge and saying that he “has gone out of his way to undermine National Security, and to make sure this Great Gift to America is delayed, or not built.”
The case in the appeals court was assigned to Judges Patricia Millett and Neomi Rao, and Judge Bradley Garcia. Millett was nominated to the position by Democratic President Barack Obama. Trump nominated Rao. Garcia was nominated by Democratic President Joe Biden. Both Millett and Garcia supported the decision, while Rao opposed it.
Defensores del patrimonio histórico impugnan a Trump en la corte
The National Trust for Historic Preservation filed the lawsuit to challenge the project in December 2025, one week after the demolition of the East Wing was completed to make room for a ballroom that, according to Trump, would have a capacity of 999 people.
Government lawyers have alleged that the project—the largest structural change to the White House in more than 70 years—must move forward because it includes critical security features against a series of threats, such as drones, ballistic missiles, and biological risks.
“These updates, alterations, and improvements are essential to protect the President, his family, and his staff, as well as the White House itself, and the entire project stems from them,” government lawyers noted in a court filing.
The preservation group's lawyers responded that the lack of a ballroom at the White House does not constitute a national security emergency.
“That common-sense conclusion is not clearly erroneous, and there is no basis to alter it,” they argued.
In an initial ruling that the government also appealed, Leon prohibited the progress of above-ground work on the ballroom without Congressional approval. In response, the appeals court ordered the judge to reconsider the national security implications of stopping the work.
In his most recent decision, Leon ordered a halt only to the construction above ground level of the planned ballroom. The judge emphasized that the White House is free to continue with underground work, including the construction of any bunker, military facilities, and medical centers.
On April 2, Trump's ballroom received final approval from the 12-member National Capital Planning Commission, which is tasked with approving construction on federal property in the Washington region.
[Publicidad]