Trump Urges Supreme Court to Save $400 Million Ballroom as Security Threats Reach Unprecedented Levels
Updated
Updated · USA TODAY · Aug 19
Trump Urges Supreme Court to Save $400 Million Ballroom as Security Threats Reach Unprecedented Levels
3 articles · Updated · USA TODAY · Aug 19
Summary
Aug. 21 is the deadline before a judge’s halt on above-ground construction takes effect unless the Supreme Court intervenes, with the administration calling completion of the White House ballroom a national-security imperative.
65% of the $400 million project is already complete, the Justice Department said, arguing major changes are no longer feasible and that any delay would leave President Donald Trump, his family and staff exposed to unacceptable risk.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation says the administration is trying to make the project irreversible before courts can fully review it, while the government counters it accelerated work to meet extraordinary security threats, not to evade scrutiny.
A federal appeals court this month upheld the lower-court ruling that above-ground work needs congressional approval, leaving the justices to decide whether Trump can keep building the 90,000-square-foot ballroom beside the White House.