Trump administration says White House ballroom construction is a matter of national security
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration held a court hearing Monday against the president. White House ballroom For national security reasons, the construction project must continue.
The application comes in response to a lawsuit filed last Friday. National Trust for Historic Preservation Asking a federal judge to halt the project until it undergoes multiple independent reviews and receives approval from Congress.
The administration included in its dossier a statement from the deputy director of the U.S. Secret Service who said more work would be done at the old site. White House East Wing It is still needed to meet the Agency’s “safety and security requirements.” The administration offered to share confidential details with the judge in a personal setting without the plaintiffs present.
The government’s response to the lawsuit offers the most comprehensive look yet at the ballroom construction project; It also sheds light on how the project was so quickly approved by the Trump administration bureaucracy and its expanding scope.
The applications argue that final plans for the ballroom have not yet been completed, despite ongoing demolition and other work to prepare the site for construction. John Stanwich, the National Park Service’s liaison with the White House, wrote that underground work continues in the area and that work on the foundations will begin in January. Aboveground construction “is not expected to begin until April 2026 at the earliest,” he wrote.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation did not immediately respond to email messages seeking comment.
The privately funded group last week asked the U.S. District Court to block the addition of Trump’s ballroom until it undergoes comprehensive design reviews, environmental assessments, public comments and congressional debate and approval.
Trump had the East Wing demolished in October as part of an estimated $300 million project to build a 90,000-square-foot ballroom before his term ends in 2029.
The administration argues in the filing that the plaintiff’s claims regarding the demolition of the East Wing are “moot” because the demolition cannot be undone. Management also argues that claims about future construction are “immature” because the plans are not final.
The administration also argues that the National Trust for Historic Preservation cannot create “irreparable harm” because above-ground construction is not expected until April. He argues that the reviews sought in the lawsuit “will begin soon without the Court’s involvement,” in consultation with the National Capital Planning Commission and the Commission on Fine Arts.
“Even if Plaintiff is able to meet the threshold hurdles of mootness, maturity, and standing, Plaintiff will not be able to meet each of the stringent requirements necessary to obtain such an extraordinary preliminary injunction,” the administration said.
Trump’s ballroom project has drawn criticism in the historic preservation and architecture community and among his political rivals, but the lawsuit is the most concrete effort yet to change or halt plans for an addition that would have been nearly twice the size of the White House before the East Wing was demolished.
The hearing in the case was scheduled for Tuesday in federal court in Washington.
