Donald Trump’s much-publicized efforts to build a White House ballroom hit a snag this week when a federal appeals court issued a decision blocking the ballroom’s construction.
Per The Hill, work must stop in the ballroom, except for below-ground construction. The president, without authorization from Congress, had demolished the East Wing of the White House and announced plans to build a new 90,000-square-foot ballroom there.
Breaking news: President Trump must halt aboveground construction of his planned White House ballroom, a federal appeals panel ruled, saying that he had exceeded his authority by seeking to build the addition funded by $400 million in private donations. https://t.co/cdn8BTpJ5u
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) August 7, 2026
“The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit panel ruled that Congress retains control over funding for development at the White House and had not authorized Trump’s project,” The Hill said of the decision. The court did pause its decision for two weeks to allow the White House to appeal to the Supreme Court for emergency relief.
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“We are aware of no instance in American history in which a President unilaterally and using privately collected funds demolished substantial portions of the White House that Congress authorized to be built and American taxpayers paid for. Until now,” the 2-1 majority wrote.
BREAKING: The D.C. Circuit has ruled against construction of the White House ballroom, saying it requires congressional approval. Decision is delayed 14 days to permit time for appeal. https://t.co/U5dLHrSYkZ pic.twitter.com/ny8yNEuczb
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) August 7, 2026
The suit had been brought by a preservation group. In her dissent, Trump-appointed U.S. Circuit Judge Neomi Rao wrote that the group had no standing to sue.
“The district court seized supervision of construction at the White House, and my colleagues affirm this judicial overreach,” Rao wrote in the dissent. “Because the injunction is beyond the proper province of the federal courts, construction should be allowed to continue.”
