The administration on Friday asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia to overturn a federal judge's directive that construction on a new White House ballroom be suspended. In the emergency filing, officials contended that halting the project leaves the executive mansion "open and exposed" and poses "grave national-security harms to the White House, the President and his family, and the President’s staff."
The litigation began after U.S. District Judge Richard Leon on Tuesday ordered construction to pause while a lawsuit moves through the courts. That suit, brought by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, seeks to block the $400 million project being built on the site of the recently demolished East Wing. Plaintiffs argue the construction cannot proceed without approval from Congress.
Judge Leon, an appointee of former President George W. Bush, temporarily stayed his own order for 14 days to allow the administration an opportunity to appeal. The administration's new filing describes the district court as lacking constitutional authority to consider the case, characterizing the plaintiffs' claims as grounded in a "single pedestrian’s subjective architectural feelings."
The initial complaint alleges that President Trump exceeded his authority when he ordered the razing of the historic East Wing and initiated the new building. In its response, filed on Friday, the National Park Service argued the Trust’s claims are "legally baseless," that "no Trust member has standing," and that the President has unfettered authority to renovate the White House.
Details in the filings reiterate the long-standing nature of the East Wing: it was originally erected in 1902 and later expanded roughly four decades after its construction during Franklin D. Roosevelt’s presidency. The contested ballroom is part of a larger initiative by the President to alter elements of Washington’s monumental core, which also includes proposals for a 250-foot (76-meter) arch and modifications at the Kennedy Center.
The legal battle now centers on whether the district court can adjudicate the Trust’s constitutional claims, whether the Trust has members with legal standing to sue, and whether presidential authority covers the renovations at issue. The administration’s emergency request seeks immediate restoration of construction activity on national security grounds while the appellate process unfolds.