US President Is a Temporary Occupant, Not Permanent Owner of White House, Court Blocks Ballroom Construction

Washington: A US federal appeals court has ordered the Donald Trump administration to halt construction of a proposed $400 million ballroom at the White House, dealing another major legal setback to the controversial project.

The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, in a 2-1 ruling, upheld a lower court’s order that had imposed a preliminary injunction blocking construction of the ballroom.

The appeals court has stayed enforcement of its ruling for two weeks, giving the Trump administration an opportunity to seek relief from the US Supreme Court. President Donald Trump called the ruling “very wrong” and said his administration would appeal.

Judges Patricia Millett and Bradley Garcia, who formed the majority, said that a US president is a temporary occupant of the White House, not its permanent owner. They ruled that Congress has the authority to approve or reject major construction of this nature at the White House and that the administration cannot make such a decision on its own.

The court stressed that its ruling did not address the usefulness or necessity of the proposed ballroom. Instead, it focused on whether construction could proceed during the ongoing legal proceedings without congressional approval.

President Trump strongly criticized the decision, arguing that it could threaten the lives and well-being of people working at the White House, as well as those who will work there in the future. He called on the Supreme Court to overturn the appeals court ruling.

Trump-appointed Judge Neomi Rao dissented from the majority decision and supported the president’s position that the authority to proceed with the ballroom project rests with the president. Trump praised Rao’s dissenting opinion.

The lawsuit was filed by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which challenged the administration’s plan to demolish the historic East Wing of the White House and construct the new ballroom. The proposed facility is expected to cover approximately 90,000 square feet and cost around $400 million.

In April, US District Judge Richard Leon had also imposed restrictions on the project, allowing only construction of an underground section that was deemed necessary for national security, while blocking construction of the proposed ballroom for hosting guests.

The latest ruling has once again put the White House ballroom project at the center of a legal battle, with the US Supreme Court now potentially becoming the next major venue for the dispute.