Trump: Court of Appeal halts White House ball

A federal court in Washington has ruled that Donald Trump must halt construction of the mega ballroom at the White House. This is according to the Washington Post. The court upheld the ruling issued in April by a federal judge, which stated that most of the construction work on the ballroom must be halted until Congress has expressly authorised the project. “Every president is a temporary tenant, not the owner, of the White House and its executive residence,” wrote Judges Patricia A. Millett and Bradley N. Garcia in their ruling. The ruling will be suspended for 14 days to allow the White House to appeal to the Supreme Court.

The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia has ruled that this injunction “has nothing to do” with the validity of the project itself, but is due to the fact that the President of the United States commenced the works without obtaining Congress’s approval. The Administration does not have “unlimited authority” to “redesign, alter and rebuild the White House to satisfy a president’s personal whim”, the Court stated. In October, the Republican president had an entire wing of the White House demolished by bulldozers to build this ballroom, designed to accommodate up to 1,000 people for various receptions and dinners in honour of foreign dignitaries. The projected budget, funded through private donations, has risen from $200 million to $400 million. The project is being challenged in court by the National Trust for Historic Preservation (NTHP), a non-profit organisation tasked by Congress with the preservation of historic buildings. Donald Trump, for his part, insists that this structure will also help to strengthen security at the White House and in Washington, for example by housing a drone platform.