Trump Administration Appeals to Supreme Court Over White House Ballroom Construction

The Trump administration filed an emergency appeal on Friday asking the US Supreme Court to allow construction to continue on a planned White House ballroom. The request follows rulings from two lower courts stating that the president lacked the necessary congressional authorization to proceed with the project. A US court of appeals for the District of Columbia circuit recently ordered a halt to above ground work, though it allowed construction on an underground security structure to continue. This ruling is set to take effect on August 21 unless the Supreme Court intervenes.

Solicitor General John Sauer argued in the filing that the project is vitally required for national security. The administration noted that the president has been the target of recent assassination attempts and asserted that the ballroom structure is designed to shield the military installation beneath it. Sauer further argued that the injunction constitutes judicial overreach and that the president has the authority to renovate and protect the White House.

The project, estimated to cost 400 million dollars, involves the site of the former East Wing. According to lead architect Shalom Baranes, the ballroom is planned to be approximately 89,000 square feet, which is larger than the primary Executive Mansion. The case was brought by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The appeals court ruled 2 to 1 that the decision to construct a massive ballroom belongs to Congress rather than the executive branch.

Outlets with a center left lean emphasized the controversy of the project and the demolition of the historic East Wing, while outlets with a center right lean focused more on the administration's security justifications regarding assassination attempts.