{"id":8122,"date":"2026-08-31T21:07:51","date_gmt":"2026-08-31T21:07:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=8122"},"modified":"2026-08-31T21:07:51","modified_gmt":"2026-08-31T21:07:51","slug":"supreme-court-lets-white-house-continue-construction-on-trumps-400-million-ballroom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=8122","title":{"rendered":"Supreme Court lets White House continue construction on Trump\u2019s $400 million ballroom"},"content":{"rendered":"
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By LINDSAY WHITEHURST<\/strong><\/p>\n

WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 A divided Supreme Court on Monday allowed the White House to continue construction on a $400 million ballroom project as lawsuits play out, a win for President Donald Trump as he flexes unprecedented executive power and remakes the capital in his image.<\/p>\n

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The decision replaces a temporary order from Chief Justice John Roberts previously issued hours before a lower-court decision halting the work would have gone into effect.<\/p>\n

Roberts publicly dissented from the latest order, however, joining with the court\u2019s three liberal-leaning justices, who called the construction \u201clikely unlawful.\u201d<\/p>\n

The majority did not decide the legality of the project, but found a preservation group likely did not have the legal right to challenge it.<\/p>\n

The lawsuit will return to lower courts, but documents say that key portions of the project could be complete within months \u2014 a quick timeline compared with a typical legal case.<\/p>\n

The Trump administration asked the justices to intervene after federal courts found the project must halt because it didn\u2019t have congressional approval.<\/p>\n

The lawsuit from the National Trust for Historic Preservation argued that President Donald Trump has no unilateral authority to undertake the work, which has included demolishing the East Wing. The group\u2019s lawyers accused the White House of trying to \u201coutrun the courts\u201d by accelerating construction.<\/p>\n

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In lower courts, the administration has argued that the president has total authority to renovate the White House and other federal buildings. Government lawyers said the ballroom project must be completed due to national security concerns, though those were not an initial focus when Trump announced the work he said would be funded by private donations.<\/p>\n

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The administration has said crews are working 20 hours a day on the planned 90,000-square-foot (8,400-square-meter) ballroom. The framework is expected to be completed in November and much of the facade done by April, with full completion slated for August 2028, according to court documents.<\/p>\n

U.S. District Judge Richard Leon ordered a stop to aboveground construction of the planned ballroom in April, though the order would allow work on bunkers and military installations below ground to continue. Leon was nominated by President George W. Bush, a Republican.<\/p>\n

The ruling was suspended but later upheld by a divided appeals court panel. Two judges appointed by Democratic presidents found the project was for Congress to decide and \u201cnot a matter for Executive self-help.\u201d A third judge, appointed by Trump, found that the preservationist group that challenged the project had no legal right to sue.<\/p>\n

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Solicitor General D. John Sauer also made that argument to the justices and said the decision halting the work was \u201cextraordinary and unlawful.\u201d He said the completion of the project was \u201cvitally required by national security.\u201d<\/p>\n

The administration has scored a series of other victories on the high court\u2019s emergency docket, though the justices have ruled against some of the president\u2019s signature policies after fuller review.<\/p>\n

Follow the AP\u2019s coverage of the U.S. Supreme Court at https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/us-supreme-court.<\/em><\/p>\n

Read more Former Primus manager now booking concerts in East Bay, Napa, Santa Cruz<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The justices intervened Monday after lower courts found work must stop because the project doesn\u2019t have congressional approval.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8121,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8122","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nSupreme Court lets White House continue construction on Trump\u2019s $400 million ballroom - Next City Digest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=8122\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Supreme Court lets White House continue construction on Trump\u2019s $400 million ballroom - 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