March 31, 2026, 10:23 p.mMarch 31, 2026, 10:35 p.m
A crane behind the White House – where the ballroom will once be.Image: keystone
US President Donald Trump is probably less likely to like this: his planned construction of a ballroom in the White House has been temporarily stopped by a federal judge through an interim injunction. This was reported by several US media outlets on Wednesday evening.
According to the judge, the project, estimated at around $400 million, should not be financed through private donations. In addition, the President is the manager of the White House, but not its owner – this is the state, i.e. the US Congress. Trump would therefore have no authority to modify entire wings of the White House on such an extensive scale on his own.
In this respect, there is no law that would have allowed the President to demolish the East Wing (where the ballroom will once stand) last year without congressional approval.
Construction is now at a standstill until formal approval is obtained from Congress. As soon as this happens, construction can continue, said the judge: “The American people will then benefit from the pillars of state power assuming their roles established by the Constitution.”
The National Trust for Historic Preservation, one of the leading American monument protection organizations, had applied for an injunction against the building because the large ballroom made the actual White House next to it appear too small.
In particular, however, the non-profit organization complained that the money for the construction came from problematic sources.
In fact, according to his own statements, Trump has already received over $350 million from private individuals and companies – mostly from the tech and crypto sectors – to finance the construction. This means the ballroom will be paid for without state tax money. A November report revealed that two-thirds of listed donors had received government contracts worth a total of $275 billion.
Trump: “Radical-left lunatics”
The US President doesn’t think much of stopping construction. On his Truth Social platform, the 79-year-old wrote: “The National Trust is suing me over a ballroom that is under budget, ahead of schedule and paid for without taxpayer money – and will be one of the best buildings of its kind in the world.”
Image: sc/truthsocial
He described the Heritage Trust as a group of “radical-left lunatics” who, incidentally, were never interested in the alleged failings of his predecessor Joe Biden.
(cpf)