Appeals court rules that Trump must seek approval from Congress on White House ballroom, ordering halt to construction

Court of Appeals sided with historic preservationists who sued to stop construction of the 8,400-square-metre ballroom without congressional approval. A federal appeals court on Friday ordered US President Donald Trump’s administration to stop construction of its $400 million ballroom on the site of the White House's demolished East Wing. The court added that a president cannot fundamentally reshape the White House without congressional approval.

A federal appeals court has issued a ruling blocking the construction of President Donald Trump's $400 million White House ballroom, concluding that congressional approval is needed for the project. The ballroom is expected to cost as much as $600 million. A US federal appeal court on Friday ordered President Donald Trump’s administration to stop construction on a US$400 million ballroom on the site of the White House’s demolished East Wing, dealing the Republican leader a major setback in a ‌case testing his presidential authority.

The Washington-based US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in a divided 2-1 order upheld a preliminary injunction won by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which sued last year after the... A federal appeals court blocked Trump’s $400 million White House ballroom project, ruling that congressional approval is required. WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal appeals court on Friday ordered the Trump administration to halt construction of its $400 million ballroom at the White House without congressional approval.President Donald Trump doesn’t have the unilateral authority to construct a 90,000-square-foot (8,400-square-meter) ballroom where the White House’s East Wing stood before he ordered its demolition, according to the decision by a three-judge panel from the U.S.

Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.In a 2-1 decision, the U.S. The court said it would stay its own ruling for two weeks to allow the administration to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.“Whether or not a massive ballroom should be constructed is for Congress to decide and is not a matter for Executive self-help,” the court wrote.“This holding has nothing at all to do with whether the proposed ballroom is desirable, or not, as a matter of policy.

This ruling does not even necessarily mean that the Defendants may not ultimately construct the ballroom.“What it does mean,” the court continued, “is that the Defendants may not do so during the district court’s expeditious litigation without securing Congress’s authorization, as the Constitution and laws require.”The panel upheld an April 16 order from U.S. District Judge Richard Leon for the administration to halt above-ground work on the ballroom. Leon, who was nominated to the bench by Republican President George W.

Bush, allowed for construction to continue on below-ground work on a bunker and other “national security facilities” at the site.Trump, a Republican, railed against Leon’s decision on social media, calling him a “Trump Hating” judge who “has gone out of his way to undermine National Security, and to make sure that this Great Gift to America gets delayed, or doesn’t get built.”The appeals court case was assigned to Judges Patricia Millett, Neomi Rao and Bradley Garcia. Millett was nominated to the court by Democratic President Barack Obama. Garcia was nominated by Democratic President Joe Biden.