Donald Trump, President of the United States of America
Oluchi Chibuzor with agency reportA United States federal appeals court yesterday ordered Donald Trump’s administration to stop construction on a $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.
“Each President is a temporary tenant, not the owner, of the White House,” and cannot fundamentally reshape it without congressional approval, Reuters quoted the Washington-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to have said in a 2-1 opinion.The order upheld a preliminary injunction won by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which sued last year after the administration tore down the East Wing and began building a 90,000-square-foot (8,360-square-meter) ballroom without seeking authorization from Congress.
“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.The appeals court placed its ruling on hold for 14 days to allow the Trump administration to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.Trump, who has increasingly claimed that the ballroom project was a security necessity, referred to the structure as a “military center” in a post on Truth Social on Friday and said the administration would appeal to the Supreme Court. He called the decision “horrendous” and politically motivated and said it left him, other White House officials and visitors exposed to attack.
