{"id":6710,"date":"2026-03-31T19:55:33","date_gmt":"2026-03-31T19:55:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.angesfinanciers.org\/?p=6710"},"modified":"2026-04-10T15:43:17","modified_gmt":"2026-04-10T15:43:17","slug":"white-house-ballroom-construction-halted-by-judge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.angesfinanciers.org\/index.php\/2026\/03\/31\/white-house-ballroom-construction-halted-by-judge\/","title":{"rendered":"White House ballroom construction halted by judge"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"White<\/div>\n

The White House<\/a> ballroom project has been temporarily halted by a US judge, who has ruled that proper procedures were not followed before the project began.<\/span><\/p>\n

Federal judge Richard J Leon ruled on Tuesday with a 35-page opinion<\/a> that construction must stop on the East Wing Modernisation Project, which includes the massive ballroom, and seek congressional approval.<\/p>\n

“The President of the United States is the steward of the White House for future generations of First Families,” said the ruling.<\/p>\n

“He is not, however, the owner!”<\/p>\n

The case was brought to court by the National Trust for Historic Preservation against the National Park Service, which manages the land, in December 2025 on the basis that the project had gone forward without proper review.<\/p>\n

“The ballroom construction project must stop”<\/strong><\/p>\n

In February 2026, Leon denied the injunction<\/a>, asking for amendments to the complaint.<\/p>\n

According to the New York Times<\/a>, Leon has presided over “months of litigation” before stepping in this week to issue a decision on the amended case, just two days ahead of a National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) meeting where the project was set to be reviewed for approval.<\/p>\n

“I have concluded that the National Trust is likely to succeed on the merits because no statute comes close to giving the President the authority he claims to have,” wrote Leon in his opinion.<\/p>\n

“As such, I must therefore grant the National Trust’s Motion for a Preliminary Injunction, and the ballroom construction project must stop until Congress authorizes its completion.”<\/p>\n

The analysis states that the law vests “Congress with complete authority over public lands” and that President Trump has acted beyond his powers in his construction of the White House ballroom.<\/p>\n