Supreme Court chief justice allows work on Trump's $400M White House ballroom to continue for now
The temporary order comes hours before lower-court rulings would have forced a halt to aboveground construction.
The US Supreme Court on Friday temporarily permitted construction on President Donald Trump's $400 million White House ballroom project to continue. Chief Justice John Roberts granted a stay, allowing the $400m (£297m) project to proceed while the high court deliberates on a case that seeks to halt it entirely. The decision came after a federal appeals court had ordered a halt to the work earlier in the month, arguing that President Trump, as a temporary tenant of the White House, could not make alterations without congressional approval.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation, a preservation group, filed the lawsuit against the ballroom, contending that the project would cause irreversible damage to the historical building. The court's ruling represents a temporary victory for Trump, who has advocated for the addition of the ballroom as a space for grand parties, State Visits, and national security purposes.
Should the court rule against the administration, the White House would have been legally bound to cease construction on Friday. President Trump maintains that the new ballroom is necessary to accommodate people for grand parties, State Visits, and is essential for national security. Government lawyers argued that the security complex and features included in the ballroom project are crucial to protecting the White House from various threats. The Supreme Court's stay remains in place pending further action from the court.
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