The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court to let construction continue on its $400 million White House ballroom while it appeals a D.C. Circuit ruling that found Trump lacks unilateral authority to build the 90,000-square-foot addition without congressional approval. The appeals court's 2-1 decision paused above-ground work, siding with historic preservationists, though the pause is itself suspended for two weeks to allow the appeal.
Solicitor General D. John Sauer called the injunction 'extraordinary and unlawful,' arguing the ballroom is a 'totally secure' national-security necessity, and the filing publicly confirmed for the first time that a threatened missile attack on Air Force One over Turkey last month prompted a secret alternate flight for Trump. The administration says the project is privately funded, 65% complete, and 'on time and under budget,' though Democrats in Congress say funds from Trump's tax bill may be paying for it, and the administration has separately asked Congress for more money it hasn't received.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation, which brought the suit, accused the administration of trying to 'outrun the courts,' pointing to plans to pour 3,000 more cubic yards of concrete and install a million pounds of rebar in the coming week alone. A Justice Department lawyer previously told the appeals court that, under the administration's theory, the government could bulldoze the Statue of Liberty without anyone having standing to object.
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