Appeals court blocks construction of White House ballroom
News
The ruling said that congressional approval is needed for the project.
A federal appeals court issued a ruling Friday blocking the construction of President Donald Trump’s $400 million White House ballroom, concluding that congressional approval is needed for the project.
Judges Patricia Millett and Bradley Garcia rebuked President Trump for making the unprecedented changes to the historic structure without consulting Congress.
Details
“Each President is a temporary tenant, not the owner, of the White House and its Executive Residence. The President has no — and claims no — constitutionally assigned authority over that property,” they wrote.
They concluded that the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which sued to block the construction, demonstrated that only Congress has the authority to approve the changes, and that it never delegated that authority to Trump.
“Whether or not a massive ballroom should be constructed is for Congress to decide and is not a matter for Executive self-help,” they wrote.
Analysis
“This holding has nothing at all to do with whether the proposed ballroom is desirable, or not, as a matter of policy. This ruling does not even necessarily mean that the Defendants may not ultimately construct the ballroom. What it does mean is that the Defendants may not do so during the district court’s expeditious litigation without securing Congress’s authorization, as the Constitution and laws require,” they said.
Trump, in a social media post, said he would immediately appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court.
Judge Neomi Rao dissented from the majority, concluding that the National Trust for Historic Preservation does not have the jurisdiction to bring the lawsuit. She also argued that it is “likely within the President’s authority to make improvements to the Executive Residence” and that the Trump administration would be harmed by the blocking construction.
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