US President Donald Trump was ordered on Friday to halt construction of a ballroom on the site of the demolished East Wing.
The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit upheld a preliminary injunction won by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which had sued Trump over the matter last year.
It was a major setback for Trump, who has touted the project, saying the White House needed a large ballroom to host events.
The court’s ruling has been placed on hold for 14 days to allow the Trump administration to appeal the ruling to the US Supreme Court.
Trump confirmed the move, saying his team will be “immediately appealing” to the Supreme Court.
The US president blasted the decision as a “horrendous, politically motivated, and unlawful ruling.”
“The Circuit Court also refused to acknowledge that the desperately needed, and totally secure Ballroom, which is being built ahead of schedule and under budget, is a Gift from President Trump and Great Patriots of the United States of America,” Trump added in a social media post.
What did the court say?
Judges Patricia Millett and Brad Garcia, both appointed by Democratic presidents, said the order does not permanently bar construction of the ballroom, but rather it merely halts above-ground work during the lawsuit and until the White House secures approval from Congress.
“Each President is a temporary tenant, not the owner, of the White House” and cannot fundamentally reshape it without congressional approval, the court said.
“Whether or not a massive ballroom should be constructed is for Congress to decide and is not a matter for Executive self-help,” the panel’s majority wrote. “Congress has not ceded unfettered authority to the Executive Branch to dramatically redesign, reshape, and reconstruct the White House — the People’s House — to fit a particular President’s desires.”
Additionally, the court scolded “the bold assertion that the Executive can act with utter lawlessness, destroying treasured national landmarks and harming the interests of individuals.”
Court rejects ‘national security’ argument
Work on the 90,000-square-foot (8,360-square-meter) ballroom began last year with the swift demolition of the White House’s entire historic East Wing. It is the biggest structural change to the White House in over 70 years.
White House lawyers argued that the ballroom includes critical security features to guard against a range of threats, such as drones, ballistic missiles and biohazards.
“These upgrades, alterations, and improvements are essential to protecting the President, his family, and his staff, as well as the White House itself, and the entire project flows from them,” government attorneys told the court.
But the justices in the majority shot down the argument, saying that national security arguments “are not an automatic get-out-of-law-free card.”
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Edited by: Sean Sinico
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